Electronic Display Systems Connected to Vehicles and Vehicle-Based Systems

ABSTRACT

Electronic digital display systems, including roadside display devices, vehicle-based devices, personal mobile devices, intermediary servers, advertising servers, and/or additional external data sources may operate individually or in combination to identify one or more vehicle locations, driving routes, driver and passenger characteristics, and the like. Vehicle and individual characteristics may be determined based on data received from traffic cameras, vehicle-based devices, personal mobile devices, and/or other data sources. Based on the vehicle characteristics, individual characteristics, driving data and driving patterns, and the like, digital content may be determined for electronic roadside displays to be viewable by the approaching vehicles, and/or other digital display devices to be viewable by associated individuals via other display devices and at other times. Various techniques may be used to determine customized digital content. Additionally, certain systems may be interactive to allow user responses and follow-up content via on-board vehicle devices or other user devices.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of and claims priority toco-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/018,101, filed Feb. 8,2016, and entitled “Electronic Display Systems Connected to Vehicles andVehicle-Based systems,” which is a divisional of U.S. application Ser.No. 14/281,390, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,293,042, filed May 19, 2014, andentitled “Electronic Display Systems Connected to Vehicles andVehicle-Based Systems,” both of which are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Various aspects of the disclosure relate to determining and displayingdigital content for electronic display devices based on vehicle data,individual data, driving data, and the like. More specifically, aspectsof the disclosure relate to systems and methods for receiving vehiclecharacteristics, individual characteristics, and driving data fromvarious sources corresponding to current and previous driving trips,user interests or habits, and the like, and determining and displayingdigital content via electronic display devices such as electronicroadside displays or other display devices, such a mobile devices.

BACKGROUND

Roadside displays are commonly used as billboard advertisements, trafficsigns, safety warning signs, and the like. Governmental entities mayinstall street signs, speed limit signs, warnings for hazardous roadconditions, and directional or navigational signs. Additionally,advertisers may purchase or lease roadside billboards for certainperiods of time. Although roadside displays have been traditionallynon-digital (i.e., wooden and metal signs and billboards), more recentroadside displays now may be partially or entirely digital, such asprogrammable speed limit signs, electronic traffic warning signs, anddigital billboards. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to customizecontent displayed to a user based on user interests, habits, vehicledata, and the like.

In some arrangements, electronic roadside displays might not be arrangedin a location desired for display of content. In other examples, theposition of the electronic roadside display might not be idea fordisplaying determined content. Accordingly, it may be advantageous todynamically select a channel for distributing determined content to auser.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basicunderstanding of some aspects of the disclosure. The summary is not anextensive overview of the disclosure. It is neither intended to identifykey or critical elements of the disclosure nor to delineate the scope ofthe disclosure. The following summary merely presents some concepts ofthe disclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to the descriptionbelow.

Aspects of the disclosure relate to methods, computer-readable media,and apparatuses for determining and displaying digital content viaroadside displays and other display devices, based on thecharacteristics of approaching vehicles and individuals. In variousexamples and embodiments, electronic display systems may include one ormore roadside display devices and/or other digital display devices,on-board vehicle devices, intermediary servers, advertising servers,and/or additional external data sources configured to operateindividually or in combination. One or more vehicles or individualsapproaching an electronic roadside display device or other displaydevice may be identified, for example, using on-board vehicle devices,traffic cameras, personal mobile devices, and other devices in anelectronic display system. Characteristics of the approaching vehicles,individuals associated with the approaching vehicles, driving data,driving patterns, and/or other data may be retrieved and analyzed inorder to determine the digital content to be displayed on the displaydevices. In various cases, the determined digital content may correspondto a targeted advertisement, vehicle maintenance suggestion, drivingsafety warning, or other customized message based on the characteristicsof the associated vehicles and individuals.

Additional aspects of the disclosure relate to retrieving and analyzingcharacteristics from multiple different vehicles and individuals,including aggregating and/or prioritizing certain characteristics orother data when selecting a targeted advertisement or message. In someexamples, a real-time auction software application may allow multipledifferent advertisers to compete for digital advertising times based onthe identified characteristics of the associated vehicles andindividuals. Still other aspects of the disclosure relate to interactivesystems in which users may provide responses to the content displayedvia roadside displays and/or other display devices, for example, usingvehicle-based devices or personal mobile devices. User responses to theinitial content displayed via display devices may be used to selectfollow-up content, which may be transmitted for displaying to one ormore target devices.

Additional aspects discussed herein are related to retrieving dataassociated with a user, such as calendar or appointment data, and usingthat information to generate or determine content and also to identifyone or more displays on which to display the generated content. Forinstance, if appointment data includes an address of an appointment, adisplay located near the address may be selected and the generatedcontent may be transmitted to that device and displayed.

Other aspects described herein are directed to arrangements in whichgenerated content may be transmitted to a device, such as a mobiledevice, associated with a passenger in a vehicle in order to provideincreased safety in transmitting content to a user. In some examples,content may be transmitted to and/or displayed on multiple devices.

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent fromthe additional description provided herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the present invention and theadvantages thereof may be acquired by referring to the followingdescription in consideration of the accompanying drawings, in which likereference numbers indicate like features, and wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates computing systems and a network environment that maybe used to implement aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method of displayingdigital content via roadside displays based on vehicle and individualcharacteristics and/or driving data, according to one or more aspects ofthe disclosure.

FIGS. 3A-3D are diagrams illustrating various combinations of componentsand configurations in certain examples of electronic display systems,according to one or more aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method of displayingdigital content via electronic displays based on vehicle and individualcharacteristics and/or driving data, according to one or more aspects ofthe disclosure.

FIGS. 5A-5B are diagrams illustrating examples of electronic displays ofcontent based on vehicle and individual characteristics and/or drivingdata, according to one or more aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a computing environment includingan electronic display system and/or intermediary server in communicationwith a plurality of data source servers configured to provide dataassociated with a vehicle or individual, according to one or moreaspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method of displayingfollow-up content to a vehicle or individual, based on a receivedresponse to initial digital content displayed via a display device,according to one or more aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 8 depicts an illustrative electronic display system including acontent determination and display server according to one or moreaspects described herein.

FIG. 9 illustrates various components and devices of a contentdetermination and display system according to one or more aspectsdescribed herein.

FIG. 10 illustrates one example method of determining and displayingcontent according to one or more aspects described herein.

FIG. 11 illustrates another example method of determining and displayingcontent according to one or more aspects described herein.

FIG. 12 illustrates yet another example method of determining anddisplaying content according to one or more aspect described herein.

FIG. 13 is another example method of determining and displaying contentaccording to one or more aspects described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of the various embodiments, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and inwhich is shown by way of illustration, various embodiments of thedisclosure that may be practiced. It is to be understood that otherembodiments may be utilized.

As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art upon reading thefollowing disclosure, various aspects described herein may be embodiedas a method, a computer system, or a computer program product.Accordingly, those aspects may take the form of an entirely hardwareembodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment combiningsoftware and hardware aspects. Furthermore, such aspects may take theform of a computer program product stored by one or morecomputer-readable storage media having computer-readable program code,or instructions, embodied in or on the storage media. Any suitablecomputer-readable storage media may be utilized, including hard disks,CD-ROMs, optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, and/or anycombination thereof. In addition, various signals representing data orevents as described herein may be transferred between a source and adestination in the form of electromagnetic waves traveling throughsignal-conducting media such as metal wires, optical fibers, and/orwireless transmission media (e.g., air and/or space).

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a computing device (or system) 101in a computer system 100 that may be used according to one or moreillustrative embodiments of the disclosure. The device 101 may have aprocessor 103 for controlling overall operation of the device 101 andits associated components, including RAM 105, ROM 107, input/outputmodule 109, and memory 115. The computing device 101, along with one ormore additional devices (e.g., terminals 141 and 151, security andintegration hardware 160) may correspond to any of multiple systems ordevices described herein, such as an electronic display systems (e.g.,digital billboards, roadside signs, and other outdoor digital displays),mobile devices, televisions, set-top boxes, on-board vehicle computingsystems, intermediary server systems, external data source systems, andthe like. These various computing systems may be configured individuallyor in combination, as described herein, for identifying vehiclesapproaching electronic displays or particular locations (e.g.,residence, parking lot, work location, etc.), retrieving and/ordetermining various vehicle and individual (e.g., driver or passenger)characteristics of the associated vehicles, and determining digitalcontent for the electronic roadside displays and other display devices,based on the characteristics of the associated vehicles and individuals.

Input/Output (I/O) 109 may include a microphone, keypad, touch screen,and/or stylus through which a user of the computing device 101 mayprovide input, and may also include one or more of a speaker forproviding audio output and a video display device for providing textual,audiovisual and/or graphical output. Software may be stored withinmemory 115 and/or storage to provide instructions to processor 103 forenabling device 101 to perform various actions. For example, memory 115may store software used by the device 101, such as an operating system117, application programs 119, and an associated internal database 121.The various hardware memory units in memory 115 may include volatile andnonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any methodor technology for storage of information such as computer-readableinstructions, data structures, program modules or other data. Certaindevices and systems within electronic display systems may have minimumhardware requirements in order to support sufficient storage capacity,analysis capacity, network communication, etc. For instance, in someembodiments, one or more nonvolatile hardware memory units having aminimum size (e.g., at least 1 gigabyte (GB), 2 GB, 5 GB, etc.), and/orone or more volatile hardware memory units having a minimum size (e.g.,256 megabytes (MB), 512 MB, 1 GB, etc.) may be used in a device 101(e.g., an electronic display device 101, intermediary server device 101,on-board vehicle system 101, etc.), in order to identify vehicles nearor on-route to electronic roadside displays or other digital displays,locations such as residence, work location or office, parking lot, etc.,determine various characteristic of the vehicles or passengers,determine digital content for the electronic roadside displays and otherdisplay devices, determine a length of time for which the content willbe displayed, etc. Memory 115 also may include one or more physicalpersistent memory devices and/or one or more non-persistent memorydevices. Memory 115 may include, but is not limited to, random accessmemory (RAM) 105, read only memory (ROM) 107, electronically erasableprogrammable read only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memorytechnology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical diskstorage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage orother magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used tostore the desired information and that can be accessed by processor 103.

Processor 103 may include a single central processing unit (CPU), whichmay be a single-core or multi-core processor (e.g., dual-core,quad-core, etc.), or may include multiple CPUs. Processor(s) 103 mayhave various bit sizes (e.g., 16-bit, 32-bit, 64-bit, 96-bit, 128-bit,etc.) and various processor speeds (ranging from 100 MHz to 5 Ghz orfaster). Processor(s) 103 and its associated components may allow thesystem 101 to execute a series of computer-readable instructions, forexample, to identify vehicles at specific locations, retrieve ordetermine vehicle or passenger characteristics, and determine digitalcontent for electronic roadside displays or other display devices.

The computing device (e.g., an electronic display system, intermediaryserver, on-board vehicle system or mobile device, content determinationand display server, etc.) may operate in a networked environment 100supporting connections to one or more remote computers, such asterminals 141, 151, and 161. Such terminals may be personal computers orserver 141 (e.g., home computers, laptops, web servers, databaseservers), mobile communication devices 151 (e.g., mobile phones, tabletcomputers, etc.), vehicle-based computing systems 161 (e.g., on-boardvehicle systems, telematics devices, mobile phones or other personalmobile devices within vehicles), and the like, each of which may includesome or all of the elements described above with respect to thecomputing device 101. The network connections depicted in FIG. 1 includea local area network (LAN) 125 and a wide area network (WAN) 129, and awireless telecommunications network 133, but may also include othernetworks. When used in a LAN networking environment, the computingdevice 101 may be connected to the LAN 125 through a network interfaceor adapter 123. When used in a WAN networking environment, the device101 may include a modem 127 or other means for establishingcommunications over the WAN 129, such as network 131 (e.g., theInternet). When used in a wireless telecommunications network 133, thedevice 101 may include one or more transceivers, digital signalprocessors, and additional circuitry and software for communicating withwireless computing devices 151 and 161 (e.g., mobile phones, portablecustomer computing devices, on-board vehicle computing systems, etc.)via one or more network devices 135 (e.g., base transceiver stations) inthe wireless network 133.

Also illustrated in FIG. 1 is a security and integration layer 160,through which communications are sent and managed between the device 101(e.g., an electronic display system, an intermediary server, a usercomputer or mobile computing device, a content determination and displayserver, etc.) and the remote devices (141, 151, and 161) and remotenetworks (125, 129, and 133). The security and integration layer 160 maycomprise one or more separate computing devices, such as web servers,authentication servers, and/or various networking components (e.g.,firewalls, routers, gateways, load balancers, etc.), having some or allof the elements described above with respect to the computing device101. As an example, a security and integration layer 160 of a server 101may comprise a set of web application servers configured to use secureprotocols and to insulate the device 101 from external devices 141, 151,and 161. In some cases, the security and integration layer 160 maycorrespond to a set of dedicated hardware and/or software operating atthe same physical location and under the control of same entities asdevice 101. For example, layer 160 may correspond to one or morededicated web servers and network hardware in a vehicle and driverinformation datacenter or in a cloud infrastructure supporting acloud-based vehicle identification and vehicle and driver data retrievaland analysis. In other examples, the security and integration layer 160may correspond to separate hardware and software components which may beoperated at a separate physical location and/or by a separate entity.

As discussed below, the data transferred to and from various devices inan electronic display system 100 may include secure and sensitive data,such as confidential vehicle data, insurance data, and personal userdata from drivers and passengers. Therefore, it may be desirable toprotect transmissions of such data by using secure network protocols andencryption, and also to protect the integrity of the data when stored onwithin an electronic display system, intermediary server, external datasource servers, user devices, on-board vehicle devices, contentdetermination and display server, or other computing devices in thesystem 100, by using the security and integration layer 160 toauthenticate users and restrict access to unknown or unauthorized users.In various implementations, security and integration layer 160 mayprovide, for example, a file-based integration scheme or a service-basedintegration scheme for transmitting data between the various devices inan electronic display system 100. Data may be transmitted through thesecurity and integration layer 160, using various network communicationprotocols. Secure data transmission protocols and/or encryption may beused in file transfers to protect to integrity of the data, for example,File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP),and/or Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) encryption. In other examples, one ormore web services may be implemented within the various devices 101 inthe system 100 and/or the security and integration layer 160. The webservices may be accessed by authorized external devices and users tosupport input, extraction, and manipulation of the data (e.g., vehicleand passenger data) between the various devices 101 in the system 100.Web services built to support an electronic display system may becross-domain and/or cross-platform, and may be built for enterprise use.Such web services may be developed in accordance with various webservice standards, such as the Web Service Interoperability (WS-I)guidelines. In some examples, a vehicle or individual data analysis webservice, a digital content determination or offer web service, or anadvertiser auction web service may be implemented in the security andintegration layer 160 using the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) or TransportLayer Security (TLS) protocol to provide secure connections betweenservers 101 and various clients 141, 151, and 161 (e.g., user mobiledevices, vehicle-based devices, or other computing devices). SSL or TLSmay use HTTP or HTTPS to provide authentication and confidentiality. Inother examples, such web services may be implemented using theWS-Security standard, which provides for secure SOAP messages using XMLencryption. In still other examples, the security and integration layer160 may include specialized hardware for providing secure web services.For example, secure network appliances in the security and integrationlayer 160 may include built-in features such as hardware-accelerated SSLand HTTPS, WS-Security, and firewalls. Such specialized hardware may beinstalled and configured in the security and integration layer 160 infront of the web servers, so that any external devices may communicatedirectly with the specialized hardware.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, various elements within memory 115 orother components in system 100, may include one or more caches, forexample, CPU caches used by the processing unit 103, page caches used bythe operating system 117, disk caches of a hard drive, and/or databasecaches used to cache content from database 121. For embodimentsincluding a CPU cache, the CPU cache may be used by one or moreprocessors in the processing unit 103 to reduce memory latency andaccess time. In such examples, a processor 103 may retrieve data from orwrite data to the CPU cache rather than reading/writing to memory 115,which may improve the speed of these operations. In some examples, adatabase cache may be created in which certain data from a database 121(e.g., a database of vehicle or passenger-related data from various datasources) is cached in a separate smaller database on an applicationserver separate from the database server (e.g., at an intermediaryserver, advertising server, electronic roadside display, contentdetermination and display server, or other display device). Forinstance, in a multi-tiered application, a database cache on anapplication server can reduce data retrieval and data manipulation timeby not needing to communicate over a network with a back-end databaseserver. These types of caches and others may be included in variousembodiments, and may provide potential advantages in certainimplementations of electronic display systems, such as faster responsetimes and less dependence on network conditions whentransmitting/receiving information to identify vehicles, retrievevehicle and individual data, and determine digital content to display tovehicles, etc.

It will be appreciated that the network connections shown areillustrative and other means of establishing a communications linkbetween the computers may be used. The existence of any of variousnetwork protocols such as TCP/IP, Ethernet, FTP, HTTP and the like, andof various wireless communication technologies such as GSM, CDMA, WiFi,and WiMAX, is presumed, and the various computing devices and electronicdisplay systems components described herein may be configured tocommunicate using any of these network protocols or technologies.

Additionally, one or more application programs 119 may be used by thevarious computing devices 101 within an electronic display system 100(e.g., vehicle or individual data analysis software applications,advertiser auction software applications, content determination anddisplay software applications, etc.), including computer executableinstructions for identifying vehicles approaching electronic displays,retrieving and/or determining various vehicle and individualcharacteristics of the approaching vehicles, determining and displayingdigital content on electronic displays based on the characteristics ofthe approaching vehicles and individuals.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method of displayingdigital content via roadside displays, based on the characteristics ofone or more approaching vehicles and/or associated individuals. Thevarious embodiments and examples described in connection with FIG. 2 maybe implemented using a number of computing systems, operatingindividually or in combination, such as electronic roadside displays,on-board vehicle systems, intermediary servers, mobile devices, andother computing devices. Different examples of components andconfigurations for electronic roadside display systems are shown inFIGS. 3A-3D, described below. Each of computing devices and systems inthese examples may include some or all of hardware, software, andnetworking components as the illustrative computing device 101 describedin FIG. 1.

In step 201, one or more vehicles are identified as being in theproximity of one or more electronic roadside displays. Theidentification of a vehicle in step 201 may be based on a determinationthat the vehicle is currently near or approaching an electronic roadsidedisplay, or that the vehicle is likely to be near the electronicroadside display at some future point in time. Accordingly, theidentification of a vehicle in step 201 may include receiving ordetermining the current locations, speeds, directions of travel, roadsand routes being driven, and intended or anticipated destinations for anumber of vehicles. This data may be analyzed and compared to thelocations of the electronic roadside displays (e.g., LED billboards andother electronic signs) that are controllable by the electronic roadsidedisplay system.

Determinations that a vehicle is near or approaching an electronicroadside display, or that it will be near an electronic roadside displayin the near future, may be performed in various different ways, eitherby a single computing device or a combination of multiple devices in anelectronic roadside display system. For example, a computing device orsystem positioned along a roadside may use cameras, motion sensors andproximity sensors to detect the approach of a vehicle and retrieveidentifying information for the vehicle and/or passengers. For instance,a roadside motion detector and camera system located at or nearelectronic roadside display may be able to detect approaching vehiclesand receive vehicle-specific identification information, such as thevehicle's license plate number and state, VIN, registration tag, etc.

In other examples, one or more on-board vehicle computing devices, suchas vehicle console computing systems, vehicle navigation systems,vehicle diagnostic systems, vehicle telematics devices, and the personalmobile devices of drivers and passengers in the vehicle, may be used todetermine vehicle location, speed, direction, roads/routes being driven,and destination. An on-board vehicle system may be configured withvehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) or vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I)communication capabilities, and may communicate with other vehicles orroadside computing devices via digital short-range communication (DRSC)or other communication protocols to indicate its position, speed,direction, etc. On-board or vehicle-based systems may include in-vehicleelectronics, plug-in vehicle electronics and accessories, and/orafter-market devices, such as vehicle navigation systems, telematicsdevices, on-board devices (OBDs), and the like. The smartphones andother mobile devices of drivers or passengers also may include GlobalPositioning System (GPS) receivers or other location-based services(LBS) capable of determining vehicle location, speed, and/or direction,etc. Other wireless technologies, such as mobile communication networks,Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, also may be used to determine vehicle locations,speeds, and directions, etc. In some cases, on-board vehicle computingsystems may transmit the vehicle's location, speed, direction, and otherdata over short distances to nearby electronic roadside displays toindicate that the vehicle is approaching the electronic display. Inother examples, on-board vehicle computing systems may transmit thevehicle's location, speed, direction, and other data to intermediaryservers and other communication networks that may collect and analyzethe information to identify one or more electronic roadside displaysthat the vehicle is approaching.

In addition to a vehicle's current location, speed, and direction data,additional data from on-board computer systems, driver or passengermobile devices, or other data sources, may be received and analyzed instep 201 to make longer-ranging predictions about the future positionsof the vehicle. For example, a vehicle navigation system or a user'ssmartphone may contain the current trip destination. Additionally,vehicle telematics devices or other systems internal or external to thevehicle may store driving pattern data and previous driving trip logs,from which the current trip destination may be determined. Afterdetermining a likely destination of the current driving trip, thedestination can be transmitted and analyzed to identify one or moreelectronic roadside displays that the vehicle is likely to encounterduring the driving trip. For example, if a driver inputs a currentdestination into a vehicle's navigation system (or their smartphone), orif a pattern analysis of the previous driving trips for the vehicleand/or driver can be used determine the destination of the currentdriving trip, then the anticipated driving route may be analyzed toidentify electronic display along the route and the anticipated timethat the vehicle will arrive at each electronic display.

In step 202, for the vehicles identified in step 201, one or more datasources may be accessed to retrieve characteristics of the vehicles(e.g., make, model, color, operational data, etc.) and variousindividuals associated with the vehicles (e.g., drivers, passengers,owners, etc.). As discussed in more detail below, the vehicle andindividual characteristics retrieved in step 202 may be used in step 204to determine the digital content (e.g., an advertisement or othermessage) to present to the vehicle via the electronic roadside displays.Therefore, the vehicle and individual characteristics retrieved in step202 may include demographic data, financial data, insurance data,educational data, family data, personal data, and other types ofrelevant data that may be retrieved from various data sources. Severalexamples of data sources, and the types of data that may be retrievedfrom the example data sources, are described below in connection withFIG. 6.

The vehicle data retrieved in step 202 may be based on vehicleidentifier information captured by roadside cameras (e.g., a vehicle'slicense plate data) or transmitted by an on-board vehicle device (e.g.,vehicle registration data, VIN, or vehicle identifier transmitted duringa V2V or V2I communication). Based on the vehicle identifierinformation, one or more data sources may be accessed to retrieveadditional vehicle-specific data, such as the vehicle's make and model,last recorded mileage, maintenance history, emissions history, estimatedvalue, registered owners, and other insured drivers.

The individual data retrieved in step 202 may correspond to the currentoccupants of the vehicles identified in step 201 (e.g., drivers andpassengers), or individuals otherwise associated with the vehicles(e.g., vehicle owners, family members, other drivers, etc.). In somecases, the relevant individuals may be determined based on the retrievedvehicle data. For example, a vehicle identifier (e.g., license plate,VIN, etc.) may be used to identify the vehicle's owners, other drivers,and family members that may be passengers in the vehicle. In some cases,data identifying the vehicle's occupants also may be transmitted by anon-board vehicle device (e.g., vehicle computer or user's mobiledevice). For instance, a user may be identified as a driver or passengerin a vehicle based on transmissions from the user's smartphone toanother device in an electronic roadside display system. Additionally,certain vehicle-based computer systems may include the capabilities todetect the identities of the driver and passengers during a drivingtrip, and may transmit the identities to another device in theelectronic roadside display system. In each of the above examples, afteridentifying the occupants of the vehicle and/or other individualsassociated with the vehicle, one or more data sources may be accessed toretrieve demographic data, financial data, personal data, and the like,for each of the identified individuals.

In some cases, additional data from traffic cameras or other roadsidecameras may be used in combination with the vehicle and individual dataretrieved from data sources. For example, after accessing an externaldata source (e.g., an insurance server or governmental vehicleregistration server) to determine that a vehicle has two owners, imagesfrom roadside cameras may be analyzed to determine which of the twoowners, if either, is currently driving. Vehicle sensor data transmittedfrom an on-board vehicle device (e.g., internal cabin camera data,driver seat settings, radio settings, etc.) also may be used to identifycurrent drivers and passengers.

In step 203, for the vehicles identified in step 201, additional vehicledata and/or driving data may be received from one or more on-boardvehicle systems, such as a vehicle-based computing device or a portablecomputing device of a driver or passenger. For example, certainvehicle-based systems (e.g., vehicle computers, diagnostic systems, ortelematics devices, etc.) may be configured to detect and store vehiclemaintenance records, vehicle maintenance plans and schedules, vehiclediagnostics data, vehicle impacts, safety warnings, and other datagenerated by a vehicle's internal computer systems. After beingcollected by a vehicle-based system, this maintenance and diagnosticdata may be transmitted to an electronic roadside display system (e.g.,via a V2I protocol), an intermediary computer server (e.g., via a mobilecommunication network), or other device in an electronic roadsidedisplay system.

Additionally, a vehicle-based system or personal mobile computing device(e.g., a smartphone or tablet computer of an occupant) may be configuredto detect certain driving behaviors and driving patterns, such asspeeding or excessively slow driving, swerving, erratic driving, andmoving violations committed by the vehicle. These devices also maycollect driving pattern data for one or more specifics vehicle and/ordrivers over multiple driving trips. Driving pattern data may includeprevious driving times, starting points, ending points, and drivingroutes taken during previous driving trips of a vehicle and/or driver.Additional driving pattern data may include driving behaviors anddriving performance metrics, such as average speeds, acceleration andbraking patterns, turning and curve handling patterns, turn-signalusage, radio usage, and the like. Driving behaviors and patterns fromthe current trip may be compared to driving behaviors and patterns fromprevious trips to determine if the driver is driving hurriedly,cautiously, erratically, or in a high-risk manner compared to thetypical driving behaviors and patterns of the driver and/or vehicle.After collecting driving behaviors and driving pattern data, theon-board vehicle devices may transmit this data to an electronicroadside display system (e.g., via a V2I protocol), an intermediarycomputer server (e.g., via a mobile communication network), or otherdevice in an electronic roadside display system.

In step 204, the vehicle and individual characteristics retrieved fromvarious data sources in step 202, and the vehicle and driving datareceived from various on-board vehicle systems in step 203, may beanalyzed to select specific digital content to display on an electronicroadside display at a specific time. Selected digital content for anelectronic roadside display may include, for example, targetedadvertisements, vehicle maintenance suggestions, driving safetywarnings, and notifications about upcoming driving conditions. Invarious examples, the digital content determined in step 204 may bebased solely on the vehicle and individual characteristics retrievedfrom one or more data sources in step 202, or solely on the vehicle anddriving data received in step 203, or a combination of both types ofdata.

A portion of the analysis in step 204 may include determining beginningand ending times for specific digital content (e.g., an advertisement orother message) to be displayed on an electronic roadside display. If thedigital content is targeted for individuals within a single vehicle,then the beginning display time and ending display time may correspondto the earliest and latest times that content on the roadside displaywill be visible to the vehicle's occupants. These times may becalculated based on the relative positions and orientations of thevehicle and the electronic roadside display, the speed of the vehicle,the size of the electronic roadside display (including font and imagesize of the specific content to be displayed), and measurements of thecurrent outdoor visibility (e.g., based on the current time of day,weather conditions, etc.). As discussed above, the vehicle's location,speed, orientation, and direction of travel may be determined fromvarious sources, such as V2I communications, GPS or LBS data, mobilecommunication networks, roadside traffic cameras and on-board vehiclecameras, and the like. Vehicle location, speed, and direction data alsomay be predicted using driving pattern data or intended destination datareceived from on-board vehicle systems or other data sources.

In other examples, digital content might not be targeted for individualswithin a single vehicle, but instead may be determined based on ananalysis of multiple vehicles and individuals that will be in theproximity of an electronic roadside display at or near the same time.Additionally, a first selected digital content may be replaced by adifferent selected digital content after a first set of targetedvehicles and individuals have driven past and are no longer in view ofthe electronic display, and a new set of vehicles and individuals isapproaching or in view of the electronic display. In these examples, thebeginning and ending times for displaying specific digital content maybe selected by determining the times that will maximize the potentialviewing time of targeted individuals to the digital content selected forthose individuals.

The digital content selected in step 204 for displaying on an electronicroadside display device may include advertisements selected based onanalyses of the data received in steps 202 and/or 203. For example,targeted advertisements may be selected based on vehicle and individualcharacteristics retrieved from various data sources in step 202, such asdemographic data, family data, financial and past purchasing data,educational data, insurance data, and the like. For example, if thevehicle and individual data retrieved in 202 indicates that the vehiclesapproaching a certain roadside display contain a large proportion ofteenage occupants, then a targeted advertisement may be selected toappeal to that demographic. Similarly, if the retrieved data indicatesthat the approaching individuals include large proportions ofindividuals from certain economic categories, demographiccharacteristics (e.g., age ranges, marital statuses, children, etc.),educational or occupational characteristics, previous purchasinghistories, or other characteristics, then the digital advertisementsselected in step 204 may be targeted to those characteristics. Vehiclecharacteristics also may be used, in addition to or instead ofindividual characteristics, to select targeted advertisements in step204. For instance, the make, model, and year of a vehicle may indicatelikely ages, socio-economic characteristics, and hobbies and interestsof the vehicle's occupants, which may be used to select targetedadvertisements for roadside displays. Additional examples of the typesof data that may be retrieved from various data sources, and the typesof targeted advertisements or other targeted messages that may bedisplayed based on the retrieved data, are described below in connectionwith FIG. 6.

In addition to the vehicle and/or individual characteristics retrievedin step 202, the driving routes and intended destinations of thevehicles also may be used to select a targeted advertisement for aroadside display in step 204. As discussed above, anticipated drivingroute and destination information may be received or predicted fromvarious sources, such as vehicle navigation systems, a driver orpassenger's smartphone, the driver's home and work address data (e.g.,retrieved from a governmental server, insurance server, etc.), ordriving patterns and previous driving trip logs stored on the vehicle orseparate from the vehicle. After analyzing this data to determine orpredict a vehicle's anticipated driving route or intended destination,targeted advertisements may be selected based on the vehicle andindividual characteristics as well as the anticipated driving route andintended destination. For example, if a target product (e.g., campingequipment) is selected based on the individual characteristics retrievedfor the occupants of an approaching vehicle, then the anticipateddriving route and destination of the vehicle may be used to select anadvertisement for a camping equipment store along the anticipateddriving route of the vehicle.

Certain targeted advertisements determined in step 204 also may be basedon current trip driving data and/or previous trip driving data receivedfrom a vehicle on-board computing device or other system. For example,if the current trip data received from an on-board computing device(e.g., vehicle-based computer or smartphone) indicates that the vehicleis coming from a park, golf course, or other recreational activity, thena targeted advertisement may be selected for a restaurant, coffee shop,or convenience store, and the advertisement may specifically suggestpost-activity food or refreshments for the occupants in the vehicle. Asanother example, if the current trip data received from an on-boardcomputing device indicates that the vehicle is on a long-distance roadtrip, then this information may be used along with other determinedindividual characteristics to suggest a nearby rest stop, restaurant, orhotel.

In still other examples, vehicle and individual characteristics may beused in combination with driving behaviors and patterns to determinetargeted offers to drivers. For example, an insurance provider mayreceive and analyze vehicle and individual characteristics (e.g.,vehicle make and model, mileage, condition, driver age, driving record,etc.) for a vehicle approaching a roadside display. Along with thevehicle and individual data received from various data sources, theinsurance provider also may retrieve data from an on-board computingdevice or other database corresponding to the vehicle's driving dataduring the current trip and/or previous trips (e.g., safe or high-riskdriving behaviors, accidents or near-accidents, instances of high-speedskidding or swerving, detections of moving violations, etc.). Based onthe vehicle and individual characteristics, along with the driving data,the insurance company may determine a customized insurance offer for thedriver in step 204. A customized insurance offer may, for example,identify the specific vehicle or driver by name, and include aninsurance rate quote, discount, incentive, or other terms to display tothe driver via the roadside display (e.g., “Hello [CUSTOMER NAME]! We at[INSURANCE COMPANY] appreciate your safe and accident-free driving.Switch today to [INSURANCE COMPANY] and you will receive a [RATE orDISCOUNT DETAILS], guaranteed!! Visit [WEBSITE] or call [AGENT NAME ANDNUMBER] to redeem this offer!”).

In addition to targeted advertisements, other types of digital contentmay be determined in step 204, including notifications, warnings, andother messages to drivers relating to vehicle maintenance, drivingsafety, road conditions, and the like. For example, the vehiclediagnostics, sensor data, and maintenance-related data retrieved in step203 may be used to provide maintenance warnings and suggestions todrivers via roadside electronic displays. Thus, if a vehicle's internalsensors detect that the vehicle is low on fuel, coolant, or wiper fluid,or if the vehicle needs air in one of its tires, has a flat tire, isoverdue due for an oil change, needs an alignment, or has any othermaintenance issue detectable by the vehicle's sensors, then an on-boardcomputing system may transmit this information to an electronic roadsidedisplay system, so that an appropriate message, warning, or offer may bedetermined for the vehicle. In such examples, the digital contentdetermined in step 204 may include an advertisement for a local gasstation, tire shop, auto mechanic, or other business, includingdirections and relevant offers (e.g., “Almost out of gas, take Exit217,” “Oil changes, $19.99,” “Free air with any fill-up,” etc.).

Additional messages determined in step 204 may include customizedwarnings for drivers and targeted alerts relating to weather, traffic,road conditions, and other potential hazards. For example, if avehicle-based device or personal mobile device has detected erraticdriving behaviors by the driver of a vehicle, these erratic behaviorsmay be transmitted to the electronic roadside display system and anappropriate driving alert or warning message may be determined in step204. For instance, driving speed, curve-handling, lane position, radiousage, signal usage, time of day, trip starting point, and other drivingtrip data may be used to identify drivers that may be intoxicated,texting or talking while driving, beginning to fall asleep whiledriving, excessively speeding or racing, or engaging in other high-riskdriving behaviors. If a determination is made that a driver may bedriving in an impaired state or other high-risk manner, then customizedcontent may be determined for the driver in step 204, for example, a redflashing alert warning the driver that their erratic driving has beendetected, a suggestion that the driver pay greater attention, pull overto sleep, call a friend or taxi service, etc.

Other possible content determined in step 204 may include messages oralerts based on the vehicle-specific and/or driver-specific datareceived in steps 202 and 203, along with weather data, traffic data,road condition data, and the like. For example, a vehicle's anticipateddriving route and intended destination, which may be received ordetermined as discussed above using on-board vehicle systems and otherdata sources, may be used to alert drivers to weather issues, trafficissues, or road condition issues that are specific to the driver'santicipated driving route and intended destination. For instance, anelectronic roadside display may be located on Highway ABC, 1 mile beforethe exit for Road XYZ. As a vehicle approaches the electronic roadsidedisplay, the anticipated driving route and intended destination of thevehicle may be determined using the vehicle and individual data receivedin steps 202 and 203. Based on the anticipated driving route andintended destination of the vehicle, if the vehicle is likely to exitHighway ABC and travel west on Road XYZ, then the traffic, weather, androad condition alerts for westbound Road XYZ may be displayed on theelectronic roadside display. Similarly, if the vehicle is likely to exitHighway ABC and travel east on Road XYZ, or is likely to continue onHighway ABC, then different sets of traffic, weather, and road conditionalerts may be displayed on the electronic roadside display.

As discussed above, digital content might not be targeted forindividuals within a single vehicle, but instead may be determined basedon an analysis of multiple vehicles and individuals that are near anelectronic roadside display at or around the same time. On a road orhighway with moderate to heavy traffic, an electronic roadside displayis likely to be visible to several different cars at any given time. Insuch cases, the determination of the digital content for the electronicroadside display in step 204 may include collecting and analyzing thevarious types of data concurrently for multiple different vehicles andindividuals. In some cases, common characteristics among the vehicle andindividual data received in steps 202 and 203 may be aggregated andcompared against other characteristics to determine the digital contentin step 204. As an example, a group of five vehicles may be driving neareach other on the same road, and the vehicles may approach a roadsidedisplay at around the same time. If the five vehicles contain a combinedtotal of 12 women and 4 men, then an advertisement targeted for womenmay be selected, instead of an advertisement targeted for men, fordisplaying to this group of vehicles. As another example, if a group ofapproaching cars contains similar numbers of men and women, but thevehicle occupants are predominately under 30 years old, then anadvertisement targeted for a younger demographic may be selected in step204. Similar aggregation techniques may be used for any of the vehiclecharacteristics or individual characteristics discussed above, includingdemographic, educational, occupational, economic, and/or personalcharacteristics associated with vehicles or individuals. Suchaggregation techniques also may be used on the vehicle data (e.g.,diagnostic or maintenance data) or the driving data (e.g., drivingspeeds, anticipated driving routes and destinations, etc.). Forinstance, if several vehicles in a group of vehicles approaching aroadside display are low on gas, or need air in their tires, then anadvertisement for a nearby gas station with free air may be selected,whereas if only one of the vehicles is low on gas and needed air in itstires, then a different advertisement may be selected. As other example,if multiple vehicles in an approaching group of vehicles haveapproximately the same anticipated driving route, then an advertisementmay be selected in step 204 for a business located on or near thatdriving route.

When determining digital content for a single approaching vehicle or agroup of vehicles, certain characteristics may be weighted orprioritized more than other characteristics. For example, a group ofvehicles approaching an electronic roadside display may consist of 75%women, and 40% soccer fans. In this example, although the percentage ofwomen in the group of vehicles is higher than the percentage of soccerfans, an advertiser may consider the 40% of soccer fans to be a moreimportant group characteristic with a higher effective rate of atargeted advertisement. Thus, in this example, an advertisement for anupcoming soccer exhibition match at a local stadium may be selected fordisplay the group of vehicles, instead of an advertisement targetedspecifically to women, based on the expected financial return of theadvertisement targeted to soccer fans.

As the above examples illustrate, certain advertisers may placedifferent values on certain vehicle characteristics and individualcharacteristics. Additionally, some advertisers may seek opportunitiesto advertise to large numbers of people across multiple demographic andeconomic categories, while other advertisers may be more interested inadvertising to small groups with specific desired sets ofcharacteristics. Accordingly, in some embodiments, an electronicroadside display system may implement a real-time auction in whichmultiple different advertisers may compete to have their advertisementsdisplayed on a roadside display, based on the characteristic profile ofa set of vehicles approaching a roadside display. A characteristicprofile may include a comprehensive listing of the characteristics of aset of individuals in a group of one or more vehicles. Thus, in step204, a set of vehicle characteristics and individual characteristics maybe compiled based on the data received in steps 202 and 203, and thecompiled set of characteristics may be provided to one or moreadvertisers who may bid for the right to display a specificadvertisement to the group of approaching vehicles. In some cases, theremay be very little time between when the vehicle and individualcharacteristics for a group of vehicles is identified, and when thosevehicles are in viewing range of an electronic display. Therefore, forsome real-time auctions, the bids submitted by advertisers correspondingto different characteristic profiles for groups of approaching vehiclesmay be submitted in advance and stored at one or more devices within anelectronic roadside display system. For instance, one advertiser maypre-submit a bid indicating that they will pay a specified amount todisplay an advertisement to any group of vehicles including of three ormore pickup truck drivers, while another advertiser may pre-submit a bidindicating that they will pay a different amount to display anadvertisement to any group of vehicles including at least five parentsof children under the age of ten. In this example, when a group ofvehicles approaches an electronic display in the system includes threepickup truck drivers and five parents of young children, the real-timeauction software application will execute to select the advertiser thatbid the largest amount for their desired demographic profile. In someexamples, the bids submitted by advertisers in such auctions may beper-person bids, such that the amount of the bid is determineddynamically based on the number of individuals in the approaching groupthat satisfy certain characteristic criteria (e.g., X dollars per pickuptruck owner, Y dollars per parent, etc.).

Similarly, when the digital content determined in step 204 is somethingother than an advertisement, different weights and priorities still maybe attached to different individual characteristics, as well as todifferent types of vehicle data and driving data received from on-boardvehicle systems and other data sources. For example, a determinationbased on driving data that a driver may be driving while tired,distracted, or intoxicated may be prioritized over vehicle diagnosticdata indicated that the some vehicle or another nearby vehicle is inneed of an oil change. Thus, in this example, an alert directed to thetired, distracted, or intoxicated driver may be selected for displayingon the electronic display, instead of a suggestion for an oil change orother advertisement for another driver.

In step 205, the digital content determined in step 204 may be displayedon the appropriate electronic roadside display at the appropriate timesto be viewable by the vehicles and individuals for which the data wasreceived in steps 202 and 203. In various other examples discussedherein, the digital content determined may be displayed on various otherdevices (e.g., mobile devices, set-top boxes, televisions, etc.) inaddition to or instead of an electronic roadside display.

Referring now to FIGS. 3A-3D, four diagrams are shown illustratingvarious different components and configurations in certain examples ofelectronic roadside display systems. Each of computing devices andsystems shown in FIGS. 3A-3D may include some or all of hardware,software, and networking components described in the illustrativecomputing device 101 of FIG. 1. Additionally, each of the computingdevices and systems illustrated in FIG. 3A-3D may perform, individuallyor in combination with other system components, the method stepsdiscussed in connection FIG. 2, and in other examples and embodimentsdescribed herein. Additionally, although each of the examples in FIGS.3A-3D shows that digital content may be displayed on an electronicroadside display, it should be understood that in other examples,digital content may be determined similarly and displayed on other typesof (non-roadside) display devices, such as vehicle-based devices,personal mobile devices, televisions, home computing devices, and thelike, as discussed below in FIGS. 4-7.

In FIG. 3A, a diagram is shown of an example electronic roadside displaysystem including an electronic display 300 a, and one or more roadsideor traffic cameras 302 a. In this example, a control unit (e.g.,including processor, memory, network interface, etc.) located at or nearthe electronic display 300 a may receive image and video data fromtraffic cameras 302 a. The image and video data may be used to detectvehicles approaching an electronic display 300 a, and identify variousfeatures and characteristics of the approaching vehicles and theoccupants within the vehicles. For instance, image analysis software atthe traffic 302 a or electronic display 300 a may be used to identifythe number of passengers, estimate the ages and genders of passengers,identify other visible passenger characteristics, identify the licenseplate by state and number, identify bumper stickers on the vehicle,post-factory vehicle modifications, and vehicle accessories such as skior bike racks and luggage racks.

Instead of using traffic cameras 302 a, or in combination with thetraffic cameras, certain systems similar to those in FIG. 3A may includeadditional roadside sensors such as traffic counters, proximity sensors,and/or wireless transceivers (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and radiotransceivers) that may be used to detect vehicles approaching theelectronic display 300 a and determine various vehicle and individualcharacteristics.

In addition to any vehicle and individual characteristics determinedbased on the image and video data from cameras 302 a and other sensors,the system in FIG. 3A may include a local database to store and trackadditional characteristics and driving data. For example, a local datastorage at the electronic display 300 a may store data for passingvehicles, such as vehicle identifying information (e.g., license platestate and number), the time the date the vehicle passed the electronicdisplay 300 a, the vehicle's speed, acceleration, steering, and lanepositioning, the number of passengers in the vehicle, etc. Each time avehicle is detected approaching the electronic display 300 a, thevehicle's identifying information may be identified and used to retrievedata from the local data storage relating to the vehicle's previoustrips. The vehicle and driving data from the current trip may becompared to the vehicle's previous driving trips to determine additionalinformation, for example, if the vehicle is speeding or drivingerratically compared to its past trips, if the vehicle is driving theroute at an unusual time or day compared to its past trips, if adifferent driver or different passengers are in the vehicle compared toits past trips, if the vehicle has new body damage since its past trip,etc.

After identifying one or more approaching vehicles, determining vehiclecharacteristics, individual characteristics, driving data, etc., asdescribed above, a control unit at the electronic display 300 a maydetermine digital content to display to the approaching vehicles on theelectronic display 300 a. As discussed above in step 204, the digitalcontent may correspond to a targeted advertisement or other messagebased on the identified vehicle characteristics, individualcharacteristics, driving data, and the like, of the approaching cars.

Thus, in the example electronic roadside display system shown in FIG.3A, the electronic display device 300 a and/or other roadside devicesmay include processing units, memory units, and various other hardwareand software components. Thus, the various steps discussed above in FIG.2, such as identifying approaching vehicles, determining vehiclecharacteristics, individual characteristics, driving data, and the like,and determining and displaying digital content based on thecharacteristics of the approaching vehicles, along with the otherexamples and embodiments discussed herein, may be performed by anelectronic display device 300 a. In such systems, the electronic display300 a or other roadside devices may perform all functions of the system,without coordinating or communicating with any other devices, such ason-board vehicle devices or any other external servers.

Referring now to FIG. 3B, a diagram is shown of another exampleelectronic roadside display system including an electronic display 300b, and one or more on-board vehicle computing devices 310 b-312 b. Inthis example, the on-board vehicle computing devices 310 b-312 b mayinclude vehicle-based systems (e.g., vehicle computers, navigationsystems, telematics devices, etc.) or personal mobile devices of thevehicles' occupants (e.g., smartphones, tablet computers, etc.). Thesedevices may be configured (e.g., via mobile software applications) toestablish wireless communication sessions with electronic displays 300 bpositioned along roads and highways, which may be configured withantenna 305 b to receive transmissions from nearby vehicles 310 b-312 b.Depending on the types of the on-board vehicle computing devices 310b-312 b, various different protocols and techniques may be used for thewireless communication sessions, including V2V and V2I communications,Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and various other mobile communications networks.

The example system shown in FIG. 3B may perform similar functions tothose discussed above for the system FIG. 3A, in that both examplesystems may be configured to identify approaching vehicles, determinevehicle characteristics, individual characteristics, driving data, andthe like, and determine and display digital content based on thecharacteristics of the approaching vehicles. However, in some cases, theon-board vehicle devices 310 b-312 b used in FIG. 3B may be configuredto identify and transmit additional information that cannot bedetermined by the cameras 310 a or other roadside sensors, such as theidentities of the vehicle driver and passengers, specific driving data,anticipated destinations, driving patterns, and the like. On-boardvehicle devices 310 b-312 b also may be configured to transmit datafurther in advance than data can be detected by traffic cameras 310 a.This additional data from on-board vehicle devices 310 b-312 b, and theearlier availability of data from multiple vehicles, may allow thesystem of FIG. 3B to perform more detailed and robust determinations ofthe digital content for the electronic display 300 b using thetechniques discussed above in step 204.

In some cases, location, speed, and direction data from the on-boardvehicle devices 310 b-312 b may be used to determine when the content onthe electronic display 300 b will be visible to the occupants of thedifferent vehicles, allowing for more precise calculations for thebeginning and ending times for displaying certain digital content.Additionally, the location, speed, and direction data may be used toidentify vehicles that are traveling in the opposite direction (e.g.,vehicle 312 b), or traveling on a different nearby road (e.g., a highwayfrontage road) so that the electronic display 300 b will not be visibleto those vehicles, and data from those vehicles may be excluded from theselection of digital content.

In the example electronic roadside display system shown in FIG. 3B, theelectronic display device 300 b and/or on-board vehicle devices 310b-312 b may include processing units, memory units, and various otherhardware and software components configured to perform the functionalityof the system. For example, any of the individual devices in FIG. 3B, ora combination these devices, may perform the steps discussed above inFIG. 2, including identifying approaching vehicles, determining vehiclecharacteristics, individual characteristics, driving data, and the like,and determining and displaying digital content based on thecharacteristics of the approaching vehicles. Thus, the electronicdisplay 300 b and/or on-board vehicle systems 310 b-312 b may performall functions of the system without coordinating or communicating withany other devices, such as other external servers or data sources. Insome cases, the analyses of vehicle characteristics, individualcharacteristics, driving data, etc., and the determination of thedigital content to display on the electronic display 300 b, may beperformed entirely by an individual on-board vehicle device 310 b, afterwhich the determined content may be transmitted to the electronicdisplay 300 b.

Referring now to FIG. 3C, a diagram is shown of another exampleelectronic roadside display system including an electronic display 300c, an intermediary server 320 c, and one or more on-board vehiclecomputing devices 310 c-311 c. In this example, the on-board vehiclecomputing devices 310 c and 311 c (e.g., vehicle-based systems orpersonal mobile devices) may wirelessly transmit vehicle identifierinformation (e.g., a license plate number, VIN, user name or mobilenumber, or other identifiers) to the intermediary server 320 c, alongwith the vehicle's position, speed, and/or direction data. Depending onthe types of the on-board vehicle computing devices 310 c and 311 c,various different protocols and techniques may be used for the wirelesscommunication to the intermediary server 320 c, including V2V and V2Icommunications, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and various other mobilecommunications networks. The intermediary server 320 c may receive suchtransmissions from a plurality of vehicles, and may use the vehicleidentifier information and location data to track the vehicles and todetermine beginning and ending times for when vehicles 310 c and 311 cwill be in viewing range of an electronic display 300 c.

The intermediary server 320 c may also receive various types of data(e.g., vehicle characteristics, individual characteristics, drivingdata, etc.) from the on-board vehicle devices 310 c-311 c, as describedabove in FIG. 2. In some cases, the intermediary server 320 c also mayuse the vehicle identifier information to retrieve additional data fromother data sources, such as a local data storage or remote data sources(e.g., data sources 320 d). In some examples, the intermediary serveralso may receive instructions from one or more other devices, such asadvertising server 340 c. As discussed below in more detail, anadvertising servers 340 c may receive a characteristic profile of one ormore approaching vehicles or individuals, and may instruct theintermediary server 320 c (or may directly instruct the roadside display300 c) to display a particular advertisement or message. For instance,multiple advertising servers 340 c may be connected to intermediaryserver 320 c and/or roadside display 300 c, and may perform real-timebidding based on the approaching vehicles and individuals. In certainembodiments, the intermediary servers may themselves be advertisingservers 340 c, or may be integrated with advertising servers 340 c.Similar implementations and processes for intermediary servers andadvertising servers may be used even when the digital advertisements ormessages are not displayed on roadside displays, but instead on othertypes of digital displays (e.g., addressable computers and televisions,on-board vehicle devices, smartphones and other personal mobile devices,etc.), discussed below in FIG. 4.

After receiving the various vehicle and individual data from theon-board vehicle devices 310 c-311 c and/or other data sources, theintermediary server 320 c may analyze the data and determine digitalcontent for the electronic display 300 c. Thus, in some examples, theintermediary server 320 c in FIG. 3C may individually perform all of thesteps discussed above in FIG. 2, by receiving data from on-board vehicledevices 310 c-311 c and determining digital content to transmit toelectronic display 300 c. In other examples, the intermediary server 320c may perform the various steps in combination with the on-board vehicledevices 310 c-311 c and/or one or more additional devices.

In some cases, an intermediary server 320 c need not be tied to onespecific electronic roadside display, but may be configured to receivedata from many different on-board vehicle devices 310 c, and determinedigital content for many different electronic displays 300 c.Additionally, for an intermediary server 320 c connected to multipledifferent electronic displays 300 c, the intermediary server 320 c maybe capable of using the different electronic displays in sequence topresent certain users with multi-part targeted advertisements or othermessages. For instance, intermediary server 320 c may place a firstportion of a multi-part advertisement on a first electronic display 300c as a targeted vehicle is driving past the first display. Later in thedriving trip, when the vehicle approaches a second electronic display300 c also controlled by the intermediary server 320 c, the intermediaryserver 320 c may detect the approach of the vehicle and select the nextportion of the multi-part advertisement to display via the secondelectronic display 300 c. Using similar techniques, an intermediaryserver 320 c may implement interactive targeted advertisements andmessages, described in more detail below in FIG. 7.

Referring now to FIG. 3D, a diagram is shown of another exampleelectronic roadside display system including an electronic display 300d, an intermediary server 320 d, an advertising server 340 d, one ormore on-board vehicle computing devices 310 d-311 d, and a plurality ofdata sources 330 d. As discussed above in FIG. 3B, the electronicdisplay 300 d in this example may be configured with an antenna 305 d toreceive wireless transmissions from nearby vehicles 311 d. Suchtransmissions may be sent by the on-board vehicle devices (e.g.,vehicle-based computers, telematics devices, navigation systems,smartphones, etc.) using various different protocols and techniques,such as V2V and V2I communications, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and various othermobile communications networks. In this example, other on-board vehicledevices 310 d may be configured to transmit data to an intermediaryserver 320 d (e.g., via a mobile application of a smartphone orvehicle-based device), rather than transmitting data to the electronicdisplay 300 d. The intermediary server 320 d may perform similarfunctions to those of intermediary server 320 c in FIG. 3C. Thus, inthis example, the determination of the digital content to display on theelectronic display 300 d may be performed at the electronic display 300d, the intermediary server 320 d, or a combination of these devicesand/or other system (e.g., on-board vehicle devices 310 d-311 d).

As shown in FIG. 3D, both electronic displays 300 d positioned alongroadsides, and intermediary servers 320 d elsewhere, may communicatedwith various data sources to receive vehicle and individualcharacteristics, driving data and patterns, etc. For example, in somecases an on-board vehicle system 310 d or 311 d may be configured totransmit vehicle or user identification information (e.g., license platenumber, VIN, registration number, insurance policy number, name andlicense number of vehicle owner, owner insurance account number, nameand license number of driver, driver insurance account number, etc.),but might not transmit much (if any) additional vehicle characteristics,individual characteristics, driving data, etc. In such cases, anelectronic display 300 d or intermediary 320 d may receive the vehicleand user identification information, and use this information to receivevehicle and individual characteristics, driving data, driving patterns,and various other types of data from data sources 330 d. The dataretrieved from data sources 330 d may include demographic data,financial data, insurance data, educational data, family data, personaldata, driving data, etc. Examples of data sources and types of data thatmay be retrieved from data sources are described below in reference toFIG. 6.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method of displayingdigital content via electronic displays, based on vehicle and individualcharacteristics and/or driving data. The various embodiments andexamples described in connection with FIG. 4 may be implemented using anumber of computing systems, operating individually or in combination,such as various electronic displays, on-board vehicle systems,intermediary servers and other computing devices. Each of computingdevices and systems in these examples may include some or all ofhardware, software, and networking components as the illustrativecomputing device 101 described in FIG. 1.

Like the examples discussed above regarding FIG. 2, FIG. 4 relates todetermining content that may be displayed to specific vehicles and/orindividuals, based on vehicle data, individual data, driving data, andthe like. However, while FIG. 2 describes examples in which thedetermined content is displayed via roadside displays, the examples inFIG. 4 include determining content that may be displayed on other (e.g.,non-roadside) types of electronic displays. That is, the examplesdescribed below in FIG. 4 need not involve a roadside display and neednot be performed while a vehicle is driving, but instead may involve oneor more other types of display devices (e.g., home computers televisionreceivers and set-top boxes, personal mobile devices, vehicle-baseddisplay devices), and may be performed before, during, or after adriving trip. For example, a targeted advertisement, vehicle maintenancemessage, driving safety message, or other digital content may bedetermined and displayed via a vehicle-based display, smartphone orother personal mobile device, home computer, television, or any otherdigital display. Thus, while there may be similarities with the steps ofFIG. 2, differences may exist in the determinations and analysesdescribed in FIG. 4, including the selection of a display device type(e.g., vehicle-based display, personal mobile device, home computer,television, etc.) the timing for displaying the digital content (e.g.,before, during, or after a driving trip), the mechanisms for receivinguser feedback in response to the displayed digital content, etc.

In steps 401-403, data relating to one or more vehicles and/orindividuals may be received from various sources, including roadsidedisplay systems (step 401), data sources (step 402), and vehicleon-board systems (step 403). In steps 404-406, the data received insteps 401-403 may be analyzed to determine digital content to display(step 404), determine target devices on which to display the digitalcontent (step 405), and then display the digital content on the targetdevices (step 406). As indicated in FIG. 4, each of steps 401-403 may beoptional. Thus, in various different examples, digital content may bedetermined in step 404 based only data received from roadside displaysystems (step 401), based only on data received from data sources (step402), based only on data vehicle on-board systems (step 403), or basedon any combination of data received in steps 401-403.

In step 401, data may be received from one or more electronic roadsidedisplay systems (e.g., 300 a-300 d) relating to the vehicles orindividuals near the electronic roadside displays. The data received instep 401 may be similar or identical to the data received in step 201,discussed above. For example, a computing device or system positionedalong a roadside may use cameras, motion sensors and proximity sensorsto detect the approach of a vehicle and retrieve identifying informationfor the vehicle and/or passengers. For instance, a roadside motiondetector and camera system located near electronic roadside display maydetect approaching vehicles and receive vehicle-specific identificationinformation, such as the vehicle's license plate number and state, VIN,registration tag, etc. In addition to identifying a vehicle and/orindividuals in a vehicle, roadside display systems may determine thecurrent locations, speeds, directions of travel, roads and routes beingdriven, etc. As discussed above in step 201, electronic roadside displaysystems also may receive data from nearby vehicle-based systems andmobile computing devices of vehicle drivers or passengers. The data mayrelate to the vehicle, the vehicle's occupants, the vehicle's drivingdata, etc.

After collecting various vehicle information, individual information,and/or driving data in step 401, an electronic roadside display systemmay transmit this data, for example, to an intermediary server,advertising server, home computing device, personal mobile device,content determination and display server, or vehicle-based device.Electronic roadside display systems may also transmit time and locationdata in step 401, to allow the receiving devices to determine when andwhere certain vehicles and individuals were detected by the roadsidedisplay systems.

In step 402, vehicle data, individual data, and/or driving data may bereceived from one or more data sources. Several examples of datasources, and the types of data that may be retrieved from the exampledata sources, are described below in connection with FIG. 6. The datareceived in step 402 may be similar or identical to the data received instep 202, discussed above. However, the data retrieved from data sourcesin step 402 need not correspond to the detection of a vehicle orindividual approaching a roadside display, as in step 202. For example,one or more data sources may be accessed in step 402 to retrievedemographic data, financial data, insurance data, educational data,family data, personal data, and other types of relevant data relating tovehicles and/or individuals associated with vehicles (e.g., drivers,owners, etc.), regardless of whether those vehicles are currently beingdriven. The data sources may be accessed in various examples byintermediary servers, advertising servers, home computing devices,personal mobile devices, or vehicle-based devices, content determinationand display servers, etc., to retrieve vehicle information, individualinformation, and/or driving data in step 402.

In step 403, vehicle data, individual data, and/or driving data may bereceived from one or more on-board vehicle systems, such asvehicle-based devices (vehicle computers, telematics devices, navigationdevices, plug-in devices, aftermarket devices, etc.) and mobile phonesor other personal mobile devices within vehicles. The data received instep 403 may be similar or identical to the data received in step 203,discussed above. However, the data retrieved from vehicle-based devicesand/or mobile computing devices in step 403 need not correspond tovehicles or individuals currently driving or approaching roadsidedisplays. Instead, the vehicle data, individual data, and/or drivingdata received in step 403 may be transmitted at times and places notcorresponding to driving trips. For example, vehicle and driving datamay be transmitted in step 403 before or after driving trips, accordingto a predetermined schedule (e.g., hourly, daily, weekly, etc.) or whena vehicle-based or mobile device returns home and syncs with a masterdevice, etc.

In step 404, one or more computing devices in an electronic displaysystem may determine digital content to display to the vehicles and/orindividuals based on the data received in steps 401-403. Step 404 may beperformed by, for example, an intermediary server, content determinationand display server, advertising server, home computing device, personalmobile device, home television system (e.g., set-top box or televisioncontent provider), or the like. The determination of digital content forspecific vehicles and/or individuals in step 404 may be similar oridentical to the determination of digital content in step 202, discussedabove. For example, a targeted advertisement, vehicle maintenancewarning, driving safety message, or other digital content may beselected for one or more vehicles and/or individuals based on theanalysis of the data received in steps 401-403. However, in step 404,the determined digital content might not be selected for display via aroadside display system as in FIG. 2, but instead may be selected fordisplay via one or more personal mobile devices (e.g., smartphones ortablet computers), vehicle-based devices, home computers or televisions,etc. Additionally, the digital content in step 204 may be selected forpresenting to a user during a driving trip, whereas the digital contentselected in step 404 may be presented via the various devices before,during, and/or after driving trips.

In step 405, the electronic display system may identify one or moretarget devices on which to display the digital content determined forthe vehicle and/or individual in step 404. For example, after analyzingthe various data received in steps 401-403, and determining the digitalcontent in step 404, an intermediary server, advertising server, orother computing device may retrieve a previously stored list of displaydevices associated with the vehicle(s) and/or individual(s) and selectone or more of the display devices on which to display the content. Insome cases, an on-board vehicle device (e.g., vehicle-based display orpersonal mobile device) may be selected in step 404. In other cases,another computing device or online account may be selected in step 404.For example, an individual's physical address and/or televisionbroadcast account information may be retrieved (e.g., from a vehicleregistration database or other data source 300 b) and used to insert acustomized television commercial into the individual's televisionbroadcast stream. In other examples, an individual's email address maybe retrieved (e.g., from the individual's mobile device or a data source300 d) and used to transmit an email including the determined content tothe user's home computer, work computer, or mobile device, etc. In stillother examples, various user account information (e.g., financialaccounts, insurance accounts, social networking accounts, etc.) may beretrieved from different data sources 300 d to allow the determinedcontent to be presented as online advertising/content during asubsequent login by the user to the corresponding websites (e.g.,financial institution websites, insurance websites, social networkingwebsites, etc.).

In addition to the determination of the target device(s), step 405 mayinclude the determination of target times at which the determineddigital content should be presented on the target devices. For example,if determined digital content for a user is to be displayed via theuser's vehicle dashboard display, then the target time for the contentmay be during a current driving trip, or the next driving trip taken bythe user, etc. If the determined digital content is a customizedtelevision commercial for a user, then the target time for presentingthe commercial may be during a time when the user is likely (or certain)to be watching television. On the other hand, if determined digitalcontent for a user is to be transmitted to the user's personal mobiledevice (e.g., via SMS or MMS), automated telephone message, email, etc.,then the content may be sent anytime.

Although the determination of the digital content in step 404 and thedetermination of the target devices (and target times) in step 405 areshown as different steps in FIG. 4, it should be understood that thesesteps may be combined in some implementations. For example, certaincontent may be better suited to certain display types, display sizes,display characteristics, and interactive features of display devices. Anadvertiser may desire certain targeted advertisements to be display onlarger displays (e.g., televisions) and/or displays with certaincharacteristics or capabilities (e.g., high-definition displays, 3-Ddisplays, etc.), while other targeted advertisements may be suitable forsmaller and/or text-only displays such as some vehicle-based devices ormobile phones. Other targeted advertisements may be designed for displayon interactive display devices (e.g., home computers, laptops,smartphones, etc.) that may allow the user to respond and make animmediate purchase, etc. Still other targeted advertisements or othernon-advertising content (e.g., vehicle maintenance or driving safetywarnings, traffic or weather alerts, etc.) may be time sensitive, andthus the selection of the target devices in step 705 may be based on thecurrent location and/or nearest display screens to targeted users orvehicles.

In step 406, the digital content determined in step 404 may be displayedon the target devices (and target times) determined in step 405. Thus,step 406 may be similar or identical to step 205. However, as discussedabove, the target devices determined in step 405 need not be roadsidedisplay systems as described in FIG. 2. Rather, in step 406, the digitalcontent may be displayed one or more various computing devices (e.g.,vehicle-based displays, smartphone or tablet computer displays,televisions, home computers, etc.), and may be displayed at differentsuitable times (e.g., before, during, or after driving trips).

Referring now to FIGS. 5A and 5B, two example electronic displays areshown displaying content based on specific vehicle characteristics,specific individual characteristics, and/or specific driving data. Thecontent displayed in these examples, and the display devices 500 a and500 b on which the content is displayed, may be determined using thevarious techniques discussed above in FIG. 4.

For example, FIG. 5A shows a targeted advertisement for a supermarketdisplayed on a mobile device 500 a. In this example, the targetedadvertisement has been transmitted to the mobile device 500 a and may bedisplayed to the user, either just before a driving trip or during adriving trip. Mobile device 500 a may be, for example, the smartphone ofa driver or passenger in a vehicle. The advertising content, in thiscase, an advertisement/coupon for milk at ABC Supermarket, wasdetermined as described above in steps 401-404. For example, anadvertising server, intermediary server, or the smartphone 500 a itself,may have received and analyzed various vehicle data, individual datarelating to the driver or passengers, and/or driving data, beforeselecting the ABC Supermarket advertisement as the content and thesmartphone 500 a as the target device. The data received and analyzed inthis case may include, for instance, the current location of thesmartphone 500 a (e.g., in a moving vehicle at a current drivinglocation), the intended destination or anticipated driving route of thevehicle carrying the smartphone, the purchasing history and preferencesof the smartphone owner and/or vehicle occupants, the current time(e.g., to determine if the store is open), the average speed and otherdriving data for the current driving trip (e.g., to determine if thedriver is in a hurry), and various other data received from roadsidedisplay systems (in step 401), vehicle/individual data sources (in step402), and/or on-board vehicle devices (in step 403).

FIG. 5B shows a driving safety announcement on a non-mobile displaydevice 500 b, for example, a desktop computer monitor or television.Thus, unlike the example of FIG. 5A, the determined content in FIG. 5Bmight not be shown during a driving trip or on a mobile device. Instead,the driving safety announcement in FIG. 5B may be shown to a targeteduser, via television screen 500 b, monitor 500 b, or other display 500b, during non-driving times such as before or after driving trips. Inthis case, the driving safety announcement is a warning about thedangers of texting while driving. However, the particular safetyannouncement displayed in FIG. 5B may be customized in multiple ways forone or more specific individuals. For instance, the data received fromvarious sources in steps 401-403 may be analyzed to determine that auser recently drove home from work along Route XYZ, and sent three textmessages during the driving trip. This data may be retrieved from thevarious data sources described above in steps 401-403, includingroadside systems (e.g., to identify the vehicle and driver, routesdriven, driving speed, passengers in the car, etc.), on-board vehicledevices such as the driver's mobile phone (e.g., to confirm the timingof the text messages sent), and various external data sources (e.g., thedriver's phone records, the driver's accident history, previous drivingpattern data, statistics of traffic fatalities along the driver's route,etc.). The data received in steps 401-403 may be analyzed to determinean appropriate customized driving safety message for the driver based onhis driving behaviors, and to determine the appropriate target times anddevices on which to display the safety message. In this case, thecustomized safety message may be presented shortly after the drivingtrip along Route XYZ, in order to increase the chances that the messagewill attract the driver's attention.

Referring now to FIG. 6 a diagram is shown illustrating a first device600 in an electronic display system, such as an electronic displaysystem, intermediary server, content determination and display server,or advertising server in communication with a plurality of data sourceservers 610-617. As discussed herein, in certain embodiments, variousdata sources may be accessed to retrieve vehicle data, individual data,driving data, and the like, corresponding to the vehicles andindividuals approaching certain roadside displays and other displaydevices. Data source servers may be operated by one of the same entitiescontrolling an electronic display system, or by third-party entities(e.g., insurance companies, financial institutions, governmentalentities, corporate entities, etc.) that permit information queriesbased on vehicle data or individual data. As shown in FIG. 6, one ormore devices 600 (e.g., a roadside display device, intermediary server,content determination and display server, advertising server, etc.) inan electronic display system may use vehicle-identifying information(e.g., license plate number and state, VIN, vehicle registrationinformation, insurance policy data, etc.) and/or individual-identifyinginformation (e.g., name, license number, social security number, mobiledevice number, etc.) in order to retrieve additional vehicle orindividual characteristics, such as demographic data, financial data,insurance data, educational data, family data, personal data, drivingdata, purchase data, browsing history data, calendar data, appointmentdata, etc. The data retrieved from such data sources may be used todetermine what digital content will be displayed to approaching vehiclesand individuals, as well as what the device on which the content may bedisplayed.

Several examples of potential data sources 610-617 are discussed below.However, it should be understood that different combinations of datasources may be used in different electronic display systems.Additionally, the set of data sources queried may vary fromvehicle-to-vehicle and individual-to-individual during operation of anelectronic display system, for example, based on the type of identifyinginformation available to begin a query (e.g., license plate number,vehicle make and model, driver name, physical characteristics ofoccupants, etc.), the access credentials of the querying devices withinthe electronic display system, the current availability, responsiveness,and latency of the data source servers, and the like.

Governmental server 610 may include one or more servers and othercomputing devices from various governmental entities. For example, datasource 610 may represent federal, state, and local government serversoperated by agencies such as a state department of motor vehicles, aproperty records office, a tax records office, a census office, or a lawenforcement agency. In some cases, a device 600 (or other devicedescribed herein) within an electronic display system may establish anetwork connection with a governmental data source 610 and transmit arequest with identifying information of a vehicle or individual, toreceive back governmental information regarding the vehicle orindividual. Thus, the device 600 may use governmental data sources 610to retrieve vehicle registration records, stolen vehicle records,driving records, criminal history records, income and tax records,census data, and other governmental data relating to one or morevehicles or individuals approaching an electronic display within thesystem. The vehicle and individual information retrieved from agovernmental data source 610 may be used, for example, in step 204 todetermine targeted advertisements based on demographic and financialdata, driving safety reminders, and the like, via the electronicdisplays.

Insurance company server 611 may include servers and other computingdevices associated with insurance companies and other associatedinstitutions. Device 600 (or other device described herein) within anelectronic display system may establish a network connection with aninsurance server 611 to request and retrieve information relating tovehicles or individuals approaching a roadside display or other displaydevice within the system. For example, a query to retrieve existing orprevious insurance policies of the customers issued by the insurancecompany, coverage limits, previous accidents or other incidents relatingto the vehicles or drivers, claims filed by or against the vehicle ordriver, and the like. The vehicle and individual information retrievedfrom an insurance company data source 611 may be used, for example, instep 204 to determine an insurance advertisement or offer for a driver,other targeted advertisements, driving safety reminders, and the like,via the electronic roadside displays other display devices.

Private business server 612 may include servers and other computingdevices associated with various types of private enterprises andorganizations. Device 600 (or other device described herein) within anelectronic display system may establish a network connection with aprivate business data source 612 to request and retrieve informationrelating to vehicles and individuals that are approaching roadsidedisplays or other display devices, such as products and servicespurchased, times and dates of purchases, amounts spent, and the like.Data received from private business data sources 612 may be used todetermine financial profile data, purchase habits, hobbies, travel, andlifestyle data which may be used in determining targeted advertisementsfor individuals via the electronic roadside displays or other displaydevices in the system.

Social networking server 613 may include servers and other computingdevices associated with various online social network websites. Device600 (or other device described herein) within an electronic displaysystem may establish a network connection to a social networking datasource 613 to request and retrieve information relating to an individualapproaching a roadside display or other display devices (e.g., vehicledriver or passenger) or an associated individual (e.g., vehicle owner orother authorized drivers). The data retrieved may include socialnetworking profile information, friends or contacts, associated hobbies,activities, events, clubs, or other organizations, and the like. Suchdata from social networking data sources 613 may be used to determinetargeted advertisements and other messages for individuals via theelectronic roadside displays or other display devices in the system.

Driving data and/or driving pattern servers 614 may include servers andother computing devices configured to collect and store driving datacorresponding to vehicles and individuals. In some cases, data sources614 may be on-board vehicle computing devices (e.g., 310 a-310 c, 311a-311 b, etc.), such as vehicle-based computers, telematics andnavigation devices, smartphones of drivers or passengers, etc. Suchdevices may be configured to collect and store driving trips logs,driving statistics, vehicle operational data, accident records, etc.,and may be queried by device 600 (or other device described herein) toretrieve such data. Data sources 614 also may include servers or devicesseparate from the vehicles or individuals, such as traffic servers,insurance servers, or governmental servers which may collect and storedriving data or driving patterns for specified vehicles or individuals.The data retrieved from driving data and driving pattern data sources614 may be used to determine targeted advertisements (e.g., based onanticipated driving route and intended destinations), or provide drivingsafety alerts and other messages for individuals via the electronicroadside displays or other display devices in the system.

Driving conditions data sources 615, which may include traffic servers,weather servers, road condition servers, and other computing devices,may be configured to store and provide driving condition data associatedwith specific locations and driving routes. For example, various drivingconditions data sources 615 may include servers storing traffic data,weather data, road condition data, data relating to other road hazardsand/or other driving conditions. Such driving condition data may bestored based on location (e.g., address or GPS coordinates), or streetname and/or cross street, or based on point-to-point driving routes.Additional driving conditions data sources 615 may include data sourcesstoring records of accidents and/or insurance claims filed, and otherdata sources 615 may store records regarding driving routes, such asdriving times for specific stretches of roads and/or specific drivingroutes, including driving time data for different months, days, andtimes of the day, and data for different weather conditions, roadconditions, and traffic conditions, etc. A device 600 (or other devicedescribed herein) in an electronic display system may establish anetwork connection with a driving condition data source 615 to requestand retrieve information relating to the current or upcoming drivingroutes, characteristics of the intended destinations and driving routesassociated with the vehicle or individual (e.g., frequently driven roadsand routes, and corresponding days and times the customer drives, etc.).Such data may be retrieved from driving conditions data sources 615 inorder to determine traffic alerts, weather alerts, road constructionalerts, suggested alternative routes to a vehicle's intendeddestination, and the like, via the electronic roadside displays or otherdisplay devices in the system.

Appointment data sources 616 may include calendar data servers, time anddate servers, location servers, and the like and may be configured tostore and provide appointment information associated with a user. Forexample, various appointment data sources 616 may include serversstoring particular appointment information for a user, time and dateinformation, provider information, other party information, and thelike. Such information may be stored based on time and date ofappointment, location of appointment (e.g., address, GPS coordinates,cross streets, etc.), etc. A device 600 (or other device describedherein) in an electronic display system may establish a networkconnection with an appointment data source 616 to request and retrieveinformation relating to one or more upcoming appointments associatedwith the vehicle or individual. Such data may be retrieved fromappointment data sources 616 to determine content to display to a user,determine a device or type of device on which to display content,determine a time at which to display content on a particular device, andthe like.

Browsing history data sources 617 may include internet purchase servers,website servers, and the like, and may be configured to store andprovide information associated with a browsing and/or internet purchasehistory of a user. For example, various browsing history sources 617 mayinclude servers storing particular websites visited, items viewed, itemspurchased, length of time a website was viewed, length of time a productor service was viewed, and the like. Such information may be storedbased on type of website, type of product or service viewed or purchase,and the like. A device 600 (or other device described herein) in anelectronic display system may establish a network connection with abrowsing history data source 617 to request and retrieve informationrelating to internet browsing history, purchase history, and the like,of an individual. Such data may be used to determine content to displayto a user, type of device on which to display content, and the like.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method of receiving aresponse to content displayed via an electronic display device, anddetermining and displaying follow-up content based on the response. Thevarious embodiments and examples described in connection with FIG. 7 maybe implemented using a number of computing systems (e.g., any of FIGS.3A-3D of FIGS. 5A-5B), operating individually or in combination, such aselectronic roadside displays, on-board vehicle systems, intermediaryservers and other computing devices. Each of computing devices andsystems in these examples may include some or all of hardware, software,and networking components as the illustrative computing device 101described in FIG. 1.

In step 701, digital content is determined for an electronic roadsidedisplay (e.g., 300 a, 300 b, etc.) based on the characteristics of oneor more vehicles or individuals approaching the electronic roadsidedisplay. Thus, step 701 may be similar or identical to steps 204 and/or404, discussed above. In various examples, the content determined step701 may correspond to targeted advertisements, vehicle maintenancesuggestions, driving safety warnings, and notifications about upcomingdriving conditions. Additionally, as discussed above, the determinationin step 701 may be performed by any of several different systemcomponents, such as an electronic roadside display, a vehicle-basedcomputing system, a user's smartphone or other mobile device, anintermediary server, or any combination of these devices.

In step 702, the digital content determined in step 701 may be displayedon one or more appropriate electronic roadside displays within thesystem, at the appropriate times to be viewable by the vehicles andindividuals whose characteristics were received and analyzed in step701. Thus, step 702 may be similar or identical to step 205 and/or 406,discussed above. Additionally, although the initial digital content inthis example is displayed via an electronic roadside display, it shouldbe understood that the in other examples the initial content may bedisplay via non-roadside digital displays, such as televisions, homecomputing devices, vehicle-based devices, personal mobile devices, andthe like.

In step 703, a response may be received via an on-board computing device(e.g., 310 b-312 b, etc.), to the content displayed via an electronicroadside display in step 702. In some cases, in order to receive aresponse in step 703, a user interface may be rendered on one or moreon-board vehicle devices concurrently with the digital content beingdisplayed on the electronic roadside display in step 702. In such cases,a vehicle driver or passenger, in response to viewing the content on theelectronic roadside display, may respond via the user interface renderedon the on-board vehicle computing device. The on-board vehicle computingdevice may correspond to a vehicle-based computer (e.g., vehiclecomputer or diagnostic system, telematics device, navigation system,etc.), or to a user's mobile device (e.g., a smartphone or portablecomputer of a driver or passenger). The on-board vehicle device mayreceive a signal, and/or user interface content, from an electronicroadside display (e.g., 300 a, 300 b, etc.) or an intermediary server(e.g., 320 c, 320 d, etc.) at or near the same time that the determinedcontent is displayed on the roadside display.

When electronic roadside display systems support user responses andinteractivity between roadside displays and on-board vehicle devices,such systems may be used to present questions or product offers tovehicle occupants using the roadside displays, and then receive answersfrom users via their on-board vehicle devices. For example, a roadsidedisplays may display present a targeted advertisement for Product ABCalong with a question for users (e.g., “Would you like to receive moreinformation about Product ABC?”), or to inquire about the vehicle'sdestination and offer information or assistance (e.g., “Are you going tothe XYZ Shopping Mall? If so, would you like a parking recommendationbased on the current parking garage availability?). In these examples,the user interface displayed on the on-board vehicle system may be ageneric user interface that is not specific to the content displayed onthe roadside display (e.g., a simple “Yes” or “No” screen to allow theuser to respond to the question). In other examples, an electronicroadside display, intermediary server, or other device in the system maytransmit a customized response user interface to one or more on-boardvehicle devices when the targeted advertisement or other message isdisplayed on the roadside display. Customized response user interfacesmay allow users to provide specific responses to questions or othercontent on an electronic roadside display (e.g., “How much are youcurrently paying for car insurance? Enter your current rate now toreceive a quote.” or “Are you looking for nearby store or restaurant?Speak the name now to get directions.”). As these examples illustrate,responses may be received by the on-board vehicle device via spokenvoice input from the driver or a passenger, via typed or touch screeninput into a vehicle-based system or an occupant's mobile device, orother input technique. In still other examples, a driver's responsemight not be received via an on-board vehicle device, but rather may bereceived based on the route the driver takes after passing the roadsidedisplay (e.g., “Take Exit 8 to receive additional information aboutlocal hotels with vacancies tonight.”). In this example, the systemdisplaying the digital content may presume an affirmative response bythe driver if the vehicle follows a route suggested by the initialdigital content.

In step 704, if a user response is received via an on-board vehicledevice (703:Yes), then follow-up digital content may be determined forthe user that responded, based on the user's response and/or thecharacteristics of the user's vehicle or the occupants in the user'svehicle. In some cases, a specific user response is required in orderfor follow-up content to be determined in step 704. For example, if theinitial digital content displayed on a roadside display asks the user ifthey would like to receive additional information relating to a productor server, then only users answering “Yes” will receive follow-upinformation. In this example, the follow-up information determined instep 704 may include additional details and/or contact informationrelating to the product or service displayed in step 702. As anotherexample, if the initial digital content displayed on a roadside displayasks the user if they need directions or a suggested route to adestination, then the follow-up information determined in step 704 mayinclude the directions and suggested driving route based on the currentday and time, current weather and traffic conditions, other warnings oralerts, etc. Additionally, if the initial digital content displayed on aroadside display asks the user for information about a current productor service of the user (e.g., the user's mobile provider and currentcontact term, the user's insurance company and current rates, etc.),then the follow-up information determined in step 704 may include anoffer or other incentive for the user to switch products or services, inwhich the offer or incentive is based on the information that the userinput in step 703.

Additionally, the follow-up content determined in step 704 may befurther based on the vehicle and individual characteristics associatedwith an on-board vehicle device from which the response was received.For example, if a group of ten vehicles is identified as approaching thesame electronic roadside display, then the initial content determinedfor the display in step 701 may be based on characteristics of some orall of the ten vehicles and/or their occupants (e.g., using aggregationtechniques or prioritizing different characteristics, as discussed abovein step 204). However, if only one or a few of the ten vehicles respondsto the initial content in step 703, then the follow-up contentdetermined in step 704 may be based on the characteristics associatedwith the responding vehicles and/or individuals, while excluding thevehicles and/or individuals that did not respond to the initial content.

In step 705, one or more target devices are determined on which todisplay the follow-up digital content determined in step 704. In somecases, a second roadside display may be selected in step 705 to displaythe follow-up content. For example, if two electronic roadside displaysare positioned a mile apart on the same road or highway, then theinitial digital content may be displayed on the first roadside display,and after responses are received from one or more on-board vehicledevices, the determined follow-up content may be displayed on the secondroadside display. In other examples, the driving routes and intendeddestinations may be determined for any vehicles responding to theinitial digital content in step 703, and a second roadside display maybe selected along a vehicle's anticipated driving route. Therefore, whentwo vehicles respond to the same digital content on the same roadsidedisplay, the follow-up content may be sent to the two vehicles usingdifferent roadside displays based on the different anticipated drivingroutes and destinations of the two vehicles.

Additionally, in some cases, the follow-up content determined in step704 may be transmitted to another computing device associated with aresponding user, rather than to an electronic roadside display. Forexample, the follow-up content determined in step 704 (e.g., additionalproduct information, directions to an intended destination, etc.) may betransmitted back to the on-board vehicle device that received the user'sresponse in step 703. Thus, when a user responds via a vehicle-basedcomputing system, the follow-up content may be transmitted by anelectronic roadside display, intermediary server, or othercommunications network device, to the same vehicle-based computingsystem. Similarly, users responding to the initial content using theirmobile devices may receive the follow-up content via their mobiledevices.

In still other cases, the follow-up content determined in step 704 maybe transmitted to another computing device or account associated withthe responding user. For example, a user responding to an electronicroadside advertisement via a vehicle-based system (e.g., vehicle consolecomputer, navigation or telematics device, etc.) may receive thedetermined follow-up data transmitted to their personal mobile device(e.g., smartphone or other personal portable device). In this example,the follow-up data may be transmitted by text message, ashort-message-service (SMS) message, or via a mobile softwareapplication on the user's mobile device. The follow-up content also maybe sent via email, for example, after retrieving an email address forthe user(s) responding to the content in step 703 from one or moreexternal data sources. In such cases, an initial determination may beperformed to identify which individual(s) within the vehicle providedthe response to the electronic roadside display in step 703. Suchdeterminations may be performed by requiring to user to self-identifyduring the response, by using voice recognition techniques identifyspoken responses, among other techniques. Alternatively, when thespecific individual(s) responding via a vehicle-based device cannot bedetermined, the follow-up content may be sent by default to the vehicledriver, vehicle owner, or to each of vehicle's occupants.

In step 706, after determining the follow-up digital content to transmitto user(s) responding to the initial roadside display content, andidentifying the target device(s) on which the follow-up content shouldbe provided to the user(s), the follow-up content may be transmitted toand/or displayed on the identified target devices.

FIG. 8 depicts an environment 800 including illustrative devices andcomponents for determining content for display, determining a device orlocation for display, and the like, according to one or more aspectsdescribed herein. For instance, the environment 800 includes a contentdetermination and display server 810, which may include one or moreprocessors 811, memory 812, and communication interface 820. The contentdetermination and display server 810 may be similar to various othercomputing devices described herein (e.g., device 600, device 101, etc.).A data bus may interconnect processor(s) 811, memory 812, andcommunication interface 820. Communication interface 820 may be anetwork interface configured to support communication between contentdetermination and display server 810 and one or more networks (e.g.,network 830). One or more computing or other devices, servers, etc. 802,804, 840, 850, 860 may be in communication with the contentdetermination and display server 810 (e.g., via network 830). Memory 812may include one or more program modules having instructions that whenexecuted by processor(s) 811 cause the content determination and displayserver 810 to perform one or more functions described herein, and/or oneor more databases 819 that may store and/or otherwise maintaininformation which may be used by such program modules and/orprocessor(s) 811. In some instances, the one or more program modulesand/or databases may be stored by and/or maintained in different memoryunits of content determination and display server 810 and/or bydifferent computer systems or devices that may form and/or otherwisemake up the content determination and display server 810. In somearrangements, different features or processes performed may be performedby different sets of instructions, such that the processor may executeeach desired set of instructions to perform different functionsdescribed herein.

As discussed above, memory 812 may include one or more program modulesincluding hardware and/or software configured to perform variousfunctions within the content determination and display server 810. Forinstance, memory 812 may include data control/analysis module 813. Thedata control/analysis module 813 may receive data from one or moresources (e.g., raw sensor signals or data, metadata, geo-tagged locationdata, global positioning system data, user data, vehicle data, and thelike) and may process the data. The processed data may be used by thedata control/analysis module 813, as well as other modules, to determinecontent for display, determine a display location, determine a length oftime of display of content, a start time and stop time of contentdisplay, and the like, as will be discussed more fully herein.

The data control/analysis module 813 may receive data from one or moreother servers 802, 804. Other servers 802, 804 may include data relatedto a user (e.g., a user of a vehicle, a device, etc.) as well as otherpublicly available data. In some examples, the other servers 802, 804may be servers similar to those discussed with respect to FIG. 6. Data(either raw data or processed data) may be received from one or moreother servers 802, 804 and may be processed by the data control/analysismodule 813.

Data may also be received from one or more mobile computing devices 850.As will be discussed more fully herein, data related to locationinformation (e.g., from geo-tagged location data, from metadata, fromGPS data, etc.) may be received from the mobile computing device 850 andused to determine a current location of a user, as well as othercharacteristics or features of a user. Additionally or alternatively,other sensor data may be received from one or more sensors within themobile computing device 850 (e.g., accelerometers, gyroscopes, etc.) andmay be processed by the data control/analysis module 813.

In still other examples, data related to user behaviors, habits,upcoming events, navigation routes, and the like, may be received. Forinstance, data may be received from one or more calendar applications onthe mobile computing device 850. This information may be processed bythe data control/analysis module 813 to identify one or more futuredestinations or locations of a user.

The data control/analysis module 813 may receive data from one or moreother computing devices 850. For instance, the data control analysismodule 813 may receive data from one or more other mobile devices,devices associated with individuals other than a user (e.g., family,friends, etc.), and the like. In some examples, the other computingdevices 850 may include infrastructure along one or more travel routesthat may collect information related to weather, traffic, and the like.This information may be transmitted to the content determination anddisplay server 810.

The data control/analysis module 813 may also receive data from one ormore vehicles 860, as discussed more fully herein. For instance, sensordata, driving behavior data, location data, and the like, may bereceived from a vehicle 860 associated with a user, from other vehicles,etc.

In some examples, the data control/analysis module 813 may control anamount or type of data received from one or more other devices forprocessing. For instance, the data control/analysis module 813 maydetermine one or more future locations of a user and may limit the datareceived from one or more devices to only data related to areas betweenthe current location of a user and the determined location (e.g.,receive only traffic data related to the areas between the currentlocation and the future location, receive only weather data for thatarea, etc.). Accordingly, the server may reduce an amount of data to beprocessed by receiving (or requesting) the data related to a particulararea or from particular sensors or devices rather than all datacollected by one or more devices.

The memory 812 may further include a content determination module 814.The content determination module 814 may receive processed data from thedata control/analysis module 813 and may determine one or more types orpieces of content for display or distribution to a user. For instance,based on received calendar data and associated location data, the server810 may determine a particular type of errand a user is performing. Thecontent determination module 814 may then select content for display ordistribution to the user based on the determined type of errand.

Additionally or alternatively, data received by the server 810 mayinclude information related to user purchase habits and the like.Accordingly, the content determination module 814 may select one or moretypes or pieces of content related to products, services, or the like,purchased by or researched by the user.

Various other methods of determining content as discussed herein may beused as well.

The memory 812 may further include a location determination module 815.The location determination module 815 may receive location informationfrom one or more devices (either via data control analysis module 813 ordirectly) to determine a location of a user (either based on mobiledevice 850 location, vehicle 860 location, or the like). The locationinformation may be used to determine one or more devices to displaycontent or to which content may be distributed, as will be discussedmore fully herein.

Content determination and display server 810 may further include acontent display time determination module 816. The content display timedetermination module 816 may determine a length of time content will bedisplayed on a particular device for a user. Similar to various otherarrangements discussed herein related to determining start time and stoptime for content display, the content display time determination module816 may determine, based on location of the user, speed at which theuser is travelling (e.g., based on designated speed limit on a road,vehicle operational data related to speed of a vehicle, etc.), type ofroad on which a display device is arranged or on which the user istravelling, current traffic data for the road or area, and the like, anamount of time for which the determined content should be displayed. Thelength of time the content is displayed may include providing thedetermined content for a longer or shorter period of time thanpreviously determined (e.g., by content determination module 814). Forinstance, in determining the content for display or distribution, thecontent display module 814 may also determine a length of time ofdisplay or an amount of content for display that will consume aparticular amount of time. The content display time determination module816 may modify the initially determined length of time (either shortenor lengthen) and, in some examples, may communicate with contentdetermination module 814 to modify the determined content for display,select additional content, etc.

Server 810 may further include display device determination module 817.The display device determination module 817 may determine one or moredevices on which to display the determined content, or to which thedetermined content should be distributed. For instance, if, based onprocessed data, it is determined that a user has an appointment ataddress B and has just passed address or location A, the display devicedetermination module 817 may identify one or more devices (e.g.,roadside electronic display devices) having a location between address Band address or location A on which to display the content. Additionallyor alternatively, the display device determination module 817 mayidentify one or more mobile devices, such as mobile device 850, to whichto distribute the determined content and may identify a time at which todistribute the content (e.g., based on arrival at location A, a locationat which the driver may be stopped due to traffic, or the like).

The content determination and display server 810 may further include oneor more databases 819 storing information about one or more users (e.g.,contact information, insurance information, demographic information, andthe like) as well as one or more vehicle associated with the user (e.g.,make, model, year, etc.). This information may also be used in one ormore determinations discussed herein.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an illustrative content determination and displaysystem 900 that may be similar to or include one or more components orperform one or more functions similar to electronic display systemsdescribed herein. The content determination and display system 900includes a vehicle 960, a mobile device 950, a content determination anddisplay server 910, and additional related components. Each componentshown in FIG. 9 may be implemented in hardware, software, or acombination of the two. Additionally, each component of the contentdetermination and display system 900 may include a computing device (orsystem) having some or all of the structural components described hereinfor computing device 101 in FIG. 1. The content determination anddisplay system 900 may also include or be in communication with one ormore servers, devices, and the like, shown and described with respect toFIG. 8

One or more components shown in FIG. 9, such as the vehicle 960 and theuser personal mobile device 950 may communicate with each other viawireless networks or wired connections (e.g., for devices physicallydocked in vehicles), and each may communicate with one or moreadditional vehicles, additional mobile computing devices, and/orexternal computer servers 910, over one or more communication networks930.

As discussed herein, the components of content determination and displaysystem 900, operating individually or using communication andcollaborative interaction, may perform such features and functions suchas determining a location of a vehicle, determining content for displaybased on received data, determining a projected or future location of auser, identifying a device on which to display content or to whichcontent will be distributed, and the like.

Content determination and display system 900 may include one or moremobile computing devices 950. Mobile device 950 may be, for example,smartphones or other mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs),tablet computers, laptop computers, wearable devices such as smartwatches and fitness monitors, and the like. User personal mobile device950 may include some or all of the elements described herein withrespect to the computing device 101 in FIG. 1.

The mobile computing device 950 may include a network interface 951,which may include various network interface hardware (e.g., adapters,modems, wireless transceivers, etc.) and software components to enablemobile device 950 to communicate with content determination and displayserver 910, vehicle 960, and various other external computing devices.One or more specialized software applications, such as contentapplications 952 may be stored in the memory of the mobile device 950.The content application(s) 952 may be received via network interface 951from the content determination and display server 910, vehicle 960, orother application providers (e.g., public or private applicationstores). Certain content applications 952 might not include userinterface screens while other applications 952 may include userinterface screens that support user interaction. Such applications 952and may be configured to run as user-initiated applications or asbackground applications. The memory of mobile device 950 also mayinclude databases configured to receive and store sensor data receivedfrom mobile device sensors, usage data, location data received from GPSdevice, user data, browser data, purchase data, and the like. Althoughaspects of the content software application(s) 952 are described asexecuting on mobile device 950, in various other implementations, someor all of the functionality described herein may be implemented bydevice usage and evaluation server 910.

As discussed herein, mobile device 950 may include various componentsconfigured to generate and/or receive data associated the mobile device950. For example, using data from sensors 953 (e.g., 1-axis, 2-axis, or3-axis accelerometers, compasses, speedometers, vibration sensors,gyroscopic sensors, etc.) and/or GPS receivers or other location-basedservices (LBS) 954, an application 952 (or other device or module, e.g.,content determination and display server 910) may determine movement ofthe mobile device 950 (e.g., in a vehicle, with a user who is walking,with a user who is running, etc.). The sensors 953 and/or GPS receiveror LBS component 954 of a mobile device 950 may also be used todetermine driving speeds, routes, navigation routes, etc.

Mobile device 950 may further include a database 955. The database 955may include data retrieved from one or more applications executing onthe mobile device 950. For instance, the database 955 may store dataassociated with one or more calendar appointments, or other informationthat may be used to determine a future location of the user. In someexamples, data may be retrieved from database 955 by the mobile device955 and processed while in other examples the data may be transmitted tocontent determination and display server 910 for processing.

The mobile device 950 may be configured to establish communication withcontent determination and display server 910 via one or more wirelessnetworks (e.g., network 930). Additionally or alternatively, the mobiledevice, when carried in a vehicle, may be used (e.g., sensors 953 inmobile device may be used) to detect performance and/or operationalcharacteristics of the vehicle 960, similar to the one or more sensorsarranged in the vehicle 960.

Content determination and display system 900 may further include avehicle 960.

Vehicle 960 may be, for example, automobiles, motorcycles, scooters,buses, recreational vehicles, boats, or any other vehicles for whichdriving behaviors may be analyzed. Vehicle 960 may include vehicleoperation sensors 961 capable of detecting and recording variousconditions at the vehicle and operational parameters of the vehicle. Forexample, sensors 961 may detect and store data corresponding to thevehicle's location (e.g., GPS coordinates), time, travel time, speed anddirection, rates of acceleration or braking, gas mileage, and specificinstances of sudden acceleration, braking, swerving, and distancetraveled. Sensors 961 also may detect and store data received from thevehicle's 960 internal systems, such as impact to the body of thevehicle, air bag deployment, headlights usage, brake light operation,door opening and closing, door locking and unlocking, cruise controlusage, hazard lights usage, windshield wiper usage, horn usage, turnsignal usage, seat belt usage, phone and radio usage within the vehicle,autonomous driving system usage, maintenance performed on the vehicle,and other data collected by the vehicle's computer systems, includingthe vehicle on-board computing device (OBD).

Additional sensors 961 may detect and store the external drivingconditions, for example, external temperature, rain, snow, light levels,and sun position for driver visibility. For example, external camerasand proximity sensors 261 may detect other nearby vehicles, vehiclespacing, traffic levels, road conditions, traffic obstructions, animals,cyclists, pedestrians, and other conditions that may relate to vehicleaccidents and accident characteristics. Sensors 961 also may detect andstore data relating to moving violations and the observance of trafficsignals and signs by the vehicle 960. Additional sensors 961 may detectand store data relating to the maintenance of the vehicle 960, such asthe engine status, oil level, engine coolant temperature, odometerreading, the level of fuel in the fuel tank, engine revolutions perminute (RPMs), software upgrades, and/or tire pressure.

Vehicles sensors 961 also may include cameras and/or proximity sensorscapable of recording conditions inside or outside of the vehicle 960.For example, internal cameras may detect conditions such as the identityof the driver (e.g., using facial recognition software), the number ofthe occupants, the types of occupants (e.g. adults, children, teenagers,pets, etc.), and the seating/positioning of the occupants in thevehicles. Internal cameras also may detect potential sources of driverdistraction within the vehicle, such as pets, phone usage, and unsecuredobjects in the vehicle. Sensors 961 also may be configured to collectdata identifying a current driver from among a number of differentpossible drivers, for example, based on driver's seat and mirrorpositioning, driving times and routes, radio usage, etc. Sensors 961also may be configured to collect data relating to a driver's movementsor the condition of a driver. For example, vehicle 960 may includesensors that monitor a driver's movements, such as the driver's eyeposition and/or head position, etc. Additional sensors 961 may collectdata regarding the physical or mental state of the driver, such asfatigue or intoxication. The condition of the driver may be determinedthrough the movements of the driver or through other sensors, forexample, sensors that detect the content of alcohol in the air or bloodalcohol content of the driver, such as a breathalyzer.

Certain vehicle sensors 961 also may collect information regarding thevehicle's location, current and past driving routes, in order toclassify the type of trip (e.g. work or school commute, shopping orrecreational trip, unknown new route, etc.). In certain embodiments,sensors and/or cameras 961 may determine when and how often the vehicle960 stays in a single lane or stray into other lanes. A GlobalPositioning System (GPS), locational sensors positioned inside thevehicle 960, and/or locational sensors or devices external to thevehicle 960 may be used to determine the route, lane position, road-type(e.g. highway, entrance/exit ramp, residential area, etc.) and othervehicle position/location data which may be used to analyze accidentsand accident characteristics.

The data collected by vehicle sensors 961 may be stored and analyzedwithin the respective vehicle 960, for example, in vehicle data analysisdevice 964, which may be integrated into or installed at the vehicle960. In other cases, the data collected by vehicle sensors 961 may betransmitted to one or more external devices for analysis, such as amobile device 950 or content determination and display server 910.Additionally, as shown in FIG. 9, sensor data from one vehicle 960 maybe transmitted via a short-range communication system 962 to othernearby vehicles, devices, infrastructure, and the like, and vice versa.The sensor data also may be transmitted from vehicles 960 via atelematics device 963 or other network interface(s) to one or moreremote computing devices, such as one or more mobile devices 950,content determination and display server 910, and/or other externalservers.

As discussed herein, short-range communication systems 962 may bevehicle-based data transmission systems configured to transmit various(e.g., driving data, vehicle data, insurance data, driver and passengerdata, etc.) to other nearby vehicles, and to receive corresponding datafrom other nearby vehicles. In some examples, communication systems 962may use the dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) protocols andstandards to perform wireless communications between vehicles. In theUnited States, 75 MHz in the 5.850-5.925 GHz band have been allocatedfor DSRC systems and applications, and various other DSRC allocationshave been defined in other countries and jurisdictions. However,short-range communication systems 962 need not use DSRC, and may beimplemented using other short-range wireless protocols in otherexamples, such as WLAN communication protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.11),Bluetooth (e.g., IEEE 802.15.1), or one or more of the CommunicationAccess for Land Mobiles (CALM) wireless communication protocols and airinterfaces. The vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) transmissions between theshort-range communication systems 962 may be sent via DSRC, Bluetooth,satellite, GSM infrared, IEEE 802.11, WiMAX, RFID, and/or any suitablewireless communication media, standards, and protocols. In certainsystems, short-range communication systems 962 may include specializedhardware installed in vehicle 960 (e.g., transceivers, antennas, etc.),while in other examples the communication systems 962 may be implementedusing existing vehicle hardware components (e.g., radio and satelliteequipment, navigation computers) or may be implemented by softwarerunning on the mobile device 950 of drivers and/or passengers within thevehicle 960.

V2V communications also may include vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I)communications, such as transmissions from vehicles to non-vehiclereceiving devices, for example, toll booths, rail road crossings, androad-side traffic monitoring devices. Certain V2V communication systemsmay periodically broadcast data from a vehicle 960 to any other vehicle,or other infrastructure device capable of receiving the communication,within the range of the vehicle's transmission capabilities. The rangeof V2V communications and V2I communications may depend on the wirelesscommunication standards and protocols used, the transmission/receptionhardware (e.g., transceivers, power sources, antennas), and otherfactors. Short-range V2V (and V2I) communications may range from just afew feet to many miles, and different types of vehicle data andcharacteristics or behaviors may be determined depending on the range ofthe V2V communications.

When vehicle performance or operational data, or any other data istransmitted by vehicle 960, the transmission may depend on the protocolsand standards used for the V2V and V2I communication, the range ofcommunications, and other factors. In certain examples, vehicle 960 mayperiodically broadcast corresponding sets of similar vehicle data, suchas the vehicle's location (which may include an absolute location in GPScoordinates or other coordinate systems, and/or a relative location withrespect to another vehicle or a fixed point), speed, and direction oftravel. In certain examples, the nodes in a V2V communication system(e.g., vehicles and other reception devices) may use internal clockswith synchronized time signals, and may send transmission times withinV2V communications, so that the receiver may calculate its distance fromthe transmitting node based on the difference between the transmissiontime and the reception time. The state or usage of the vehicle's 960controls and instruments may also be transmitted, for example, whetherthe vehicle is accelerating, braking, turning, and by how much, and/orwhich of the vehicle's instruments are currently activated by the driver(e.g., head lights, turn signals, hazard lights, cruise control, 4-wheeldrive, traction control, etc.). Vehicle warnings such as detection bythe vehicle's 960 internal systems that the vehicle is skidding, that animpact has occurred, or that the vehicle's airbags have been deployed,also may be transmitted in V2V communications.

As shown in FIG. 9, vehicle 960 may use telematics devices 963 totransmit data to and receive data from content determination and displayserver 910, and/or mobile devices 950. Telematics devices 963 may becomputing devices containing many or all of the hardware/softwarecomponents as the computing device 101 depicted in FIG. 1. In somecases, telematics devices 963 may receive vehicle sensor data, operationdata, and driving data from vehicle sensors 961, and may transmit thedata to one or more external computer systems (e.g., contentdetermination and display server 910, or the like) over a wirelesstransmission network 930. The telematics devices 963 also may store thetype of their respective vehicle 960, for example, the make, model, trim(or sub-model), year, and/or engine specifications, as well as otherinformation such as vehicle owner or driver information, insuranceinformation, warranty information, and financing information for thevehicle 960.

In the example shown in FIG. 9, telematics devices 963 may receive datafrom vehicle sensors 961, and may transmit the data to a mobile device950 or content determination and display server 910. However, in otherexamples, one or more of the vehicle sensors 961 or other vehicle-basedsystems may be configured to receive and transmit data directly from orto other servers 910 or mobile device 950 without using a telematicsdevice. For instance, telematics devices 963 may be configured toreceive and transmit data from certain vehicle sensors 961 or systems,while other sensors or systems may be configured to directly receiveand/or transmit data to server 910 or mobile device 950 without usingthe telematics device 963. Thus, telematics devices 963 may be optionalin certain embodiments.

The system 900 also may include one or more external servers, such ascontent determination and display server 910, which may contain some orall of the hardware/software components as the computing device 101depicted in FIG. 1. Content determination and display server 910 maycommunicate with vehicle 960 and mobile devices 950 via one or morecommunication networks 930.

The content determination and display server 910 may include some or allof the components and/or functionality described with respect to FIG. 8.The server 910 may include one or more databases 912 configured to storedata associated with a user, vehicle, or the like. Further, the server910 may include content determination and display module 911 which mayprovide some or all of the operations and/or functionality describedwith respect to FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 illustrates one example method of determining content anddisplaying content on a device according to one or more aspectsdescribed herein. In step 1000, a location of a vehicle may bedetermined. The location of the vehicle may be determined using one ormore of the methods described herein. Additionally or alternatively, thelocation of the vehicle may be determined via GPS or other data. In someexamples, the location of the vehicle may be determined via V2V or V2Icommunications as the vehicle approaches another vehicle, device,infrastructure, etc.

In step 1002, a determination is made as to whether the determinedvehicle location is within a predefined proximity of a first location.In some examples, the first location may be an electronic roadsidedisplay or other device configured to display content, as describedherein. In other examples, the first location may be a location at whichit is determined that display of content would be considered safe (e.g.,a red light, heavy traffic area in which traffic is stopped, etc.). If,in step 1002, the vehicle is not within the predefined proximity of thefirst location, the process may return to step 1002 to determine thecurrent location of the vehicle and again determine whether the currentlocation is within the predefined proximity.

If, in step 1002, the vehicle is within the predefined proximity of thefirst location, a vehicle identifier (e.g., license plate number, VIN,etc.) may be retrieved in step 1004. For instance, a vehicle identifiermay be captured by one or more cameras or other image capturing devicesalong a route on which the vehicle is travelling. In other examples,metadata from the location information received from the vehicle may beused to identify the vehicle (e.g., may be used as input in a look-uptable to identify a VIN or the like).

In step 1006, a user associated with the vehicle may be determined oridentified. In some examples, the vehicle identifier may be used as aninput in a database query to retrieve a name or other identifier of auser associated with the vehicle. In other examples, driving behaviors(e.g., based on sensor data retrieved from one or more sensors withinthe vehicle, mobile device, or the like) may be used to identify a user.For instance, the driving behaviors may be compared against previouslystored driving behaviors or patterns to identify a user associated withthe behaviors.

In step 1008, user information may be retrieved. Similar to thearrangements described with respect to FIG. 6, the user information maybe retrieved from one or more data source servers and may includepurchase data, personal data, appointment or other calendar data,browsing history, credit information, and the like. In step 1010, firstcontent may be determined based, at least in part, on the retrieved userinformation and may be displayed on a first device. The first contentmay be tailored to the identified user or interests of the identifieduser (e.g., based on the retrieved user information). In some examples,the first device may be an electronic roadside display at the firstlocation. In other examples, the first device may be a mobile device ofthe user.

In step 1012, a response to the displayed content may be requested fromthe user. For instance, the displayed content may request that the useracknowledge the content (e.g., via his or her mobile device, on-boardvehicle computing device, or the like). In step 1014, a determination ismade as to whether a response is received from the user within apredefined time limit (e.g., within 15 seconds of displaying thecontent, within one minute of displaying the content, etc). If so,second content may be determined and displayed on the first device instep 1020. The second content may include additional content orfollow-up content from the first content. In other examples, the secondcontent may include information instructing the user on one or more waysto obtain additional information if desired.

If, in step 1014, a response is not received within the predefined timelimit, a second device may be identified in step 1016. The second devicemay be a mobile device of the user (e.g., determined from the useridentifying information or other user information). For instance, if thefirst device is an electronic roadside display, the identified seconddevice may be a mobile device of the user. In another example, if thefirst device is a mobile device of a user (e.g., a smartphone) theidentified second device may be another mobile device of the user (e.g.,a tablet). In still another example, if the first device is a mobiledevice of the user, the second device may be an electronic roadsidedisplay. In some arrangements, the second device may be a television,set-top box or other device associated with the user.

In step 1018, the first content may be transmitted to the second deviceand the system (e.g., the content determination and display server 110)may cause the content to be displayed on the second device.

FIG. 11 illustrates another example method of determining and displayingcontent according to one or more aspects described herein. In step 1100,a vehicle may be identified. Similar to other example arrangementsdiscussed herein, the vehicle may be identified via a camera capturingan image of a license plate, via V2V or V2I communications, via a sensordetecting the vehicle along a route, or the like. In step 1102, alocation of the vehicle may be determined. For instance, GPS or otherlocation data from the vehicle may be received. In another example inwhich the vehicle is identified via a proximity sensor on a device orinfrastructure, the location of the vehicle may be determined based onproximity to the sensor location.

In step 1104, a user associated with the vehicle may be determined oridentified. For instance, vehicle identification information may be usedas an input in a database query to identify the user associated with thevehicle. In step 1106, the user identifier may be used as an input in aquery to obtain additional information about the user. For instance, asdiscussed with respect to FIG. 6, information about the user, as well asother information, may be retrieved from one or more data sourceservers. In some examples, the retrieved information may includeappointment or calendar information for the user. Based on the retrievedinformation, content for display may be determined and/or generated instep 1108.

In step 1110, a future or second location of a user may be predicted.For instance, the retrieved appointment and/or calendar information maybe used to determine a second location and approximate time the userwill be at the second location (e.g., doctor's appointment at 2:00 p.m.,oil change appointment at 11:00 a.m., etc.). In step 1112, a devicewithin a predefined proximity of the second location may be identified(e.g., an electronic roadside display, mobile display, mobile device,etc.). For instance, the content determination and display server 110may identify an electronic roadside display within a predefinedproximity of the second location (e.g., one block, 1000 feet, etc.). Instep 1114, the determined content may be transmitted to the identifieddevice and, in step 1116, the determined content may be displayed on thedevice at the approximate time at which it is expected the user will beat the second location.

FIG. 12 illustrates yet another method of determining and displayingcontent according to one or more aspects described herein. In step 1200,a vehicle may be identified. Similar to other example arrangementsdiscussed herein, the vehicle may be identified via a camera capturingan image of a license plate, via V2V or V2I communications, via a sensordetecting the vehicle along a route, or the like. In step 1202, alocation of the vehicle may be determined. For instance, GPS or otherlocation data from the vehicle may be received. In another example inwhich the vehicle is identified via a proximity sensor on a device orinfrastructure, the location of the vehicle may be determined based onproximity to the sensor location.

In step 1204, a user associated with the vehicle may be determined oridentified. For instance, vehicle identification information may be usedas an input in a database query to identify the user associated with thevehicle. In step 1206, the user identifier may be used as an input in aquery to obtain additional information about the user. For instance, asdiscussed with respect to FIG. 6, information about the user, as well asother information, may be retrieved from one or more data sourceservers. In some examples, the retrieved information may includeappointment or calendar information for the user. Based on the retrievedinformation, content for display may be determined and/or generated instep 1208.

In step 1210, a second user associated with the first user may beidentified. For instance, the system may detect a presence of a secondmobile device within a vehicle. In some examples, the second mobiledevice may be registered with the system (e.g., may be a device of afamily member of the user or driver of the vehicle). In other examples,the system may retrieve user information that includes identification ofa second mobile device, such as that of a spouse, child, close friend,or the like. This information may be pre-stored by the user.

In step 1212, a mobile device associated with the second user may beidentified. For instance, a mobile device number or identifier may beretrieved or determined. In step 1214, the determined content may betransmitted to the mobile device of the second user and, in step 1216,the content determination and display server 810 may cause the contentto be displayed on the mobile device of the second user. Accordingly, ifthe user is driving, the determined content may be transmitted toanother user within the vehicle (e.g., a mobile device of a spouse,child, etc.) who can then convey the content to the user without theuser reading the content directly.

FIG. 13 illustrates still another example method of determining anddisplaying content according to one or more aspects described herein. Instep 1300, a vehicle may be identified. Similar to other examplearrangements discussed herein, the vehicle may be identified via acamera capturing an image of a license plate, via V2V or V2Icommunications, via a sensor detecting the vehicle along a route, or thelike. In step 1302, a location of the vehicle may be determined. Forinstance, GPS or other location data from the vehicle may be received.In another example in which the vehicle is identified via a proximitysensor on a device or infrastructure, the location of the vehicle may bedetermined based on proximity to the sensor location.

In step 1304, a user associated with the vehicle may be determined oridentified. For instance, vehicle identification information may be usedas an input in a database query to identify the user associated with thevehicle. In step 1306, the user identifier may be used as an input in aquery to obtain additional information about the user. For instance, asdiscussed with respect to FIG. 6, information about the user, as well asother information, may be retrieved from one or more data sourceservers. In some examples, the retrieved information may includeappointment or calendar information for the user. Based on the retrievedinformation, content for display may be determined and/or generated instep 1308. In some example, determining or generating the content fordisplay may include determining a length of time for which the contentwill be displayed on the device (e.g., 15 seconds, 30 seconds, oneminute, etc.).

In step 1310, a speed of the vehicle may be determined. The speed may bedetermined from one or more sensors within the vehicle, from known speedlimit data associated with the route or roadway along which the vehicleis travelling, current traffic conditions, and the like. Based on thedetermined speed of the vehicle, a length of time for which content willbe displayed may be modified in step 1312. For instance, if it isdetermined that traffic volume is heavy and the vehicle is travellingbelow the posted speed limit, the length of time for which the contentis displayed may be increased to provide additional information orviewing time for the user.

In step 1314, a device on which the content will be displayed may beidentified. In some examples, the identified device may be an electronicroadside display at or near the identified location of the vehicle. Inother examples, the identified device may be an electronic roadsidedisplay along a predicted route of the vehicle (e.g., based onnavigation information, or the like). In still other examples, theidentified device may be a mobile device of the user.

In step 1316, the content may be transmitted to the identified deviceand the content determination and display server may cause the contentto be displayed on the identified device.

As discussed herein, various examples of generating or determiningcontent and displaying content are provided. One or more aspects of thearrangements described herein with respect to the content determinationand display server or system may be used in combination with any of theelectronic display systems described herein, or may be used alonewithout departing from the invention.

As described herein, the content determination and display arrangementsdiscussed permit use of enriched data to determine content and/oridentify a device for display, time for display, length of display ofcontent, and the like. For instance, data associated with a user may beretrieved from various sources (e.g., publicly available information,purchase history, calendar or appointment information, etc.) to generatecustomized content to display to a user, as well as, in at least someexamples, to identify a device or location of a device at which todisplay the content.

In some examples, as discussed herein, vehicle data, such as a sensordata, may be used to modify content or length of display of content. Forinstance, the system may receive speed data associated with a vehicleand, based on the speed of the vehicle may generate content having alonger or shorter display time (e.g., short content when speed ishigher, longer content when speeds are slower, etc.) or may modify adisplay time of generated content. In other arrangements, trafficvolume, speed limits for the road, etc. may be retrieved from one ormore data sources and may be used to generate a length of time ofdisplay or modify the content or length of time of display.

Further, aspects described herein provide additional safety measureswhen displaying content by identifying a passenger in a vehicle andtransmitting content to a mobile device of the passenger, rather thanthe driver, in order to safely transmit content to the driver.Additionally or alternatively, content may be displayed while a vehicleis stopped, when a user has arrived at a destination, or on one moredevices not associated with the vehicle (e.g., television, set-top box,mobile device, and the like).

The arrangements discussed herein provide for dynamic selection of achannel for distribution of content or display of content to a userbased on user information, external factors, and the like. Thesearrangements aid in providing customized content to users in accessiblelocations, via convenient devices and at convenient times.

While the aspects described herein have been discussed with respect tospecific examples including various modes of carrying out aspects of thedisclosure, those skilled in the art will appreciate that there arenumerous variations and permutations of the above described systems andtechniques that fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A content determination and display systemcomprising: one or more processors; a network interface configured totransmit content to one or more digital roadside displays or otherdigital displays; and at least one memory storing computer-readableinstructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, causethe content determination and display system to: determine that avehicle is in proximity of a first digital roadside display at a firstlocation; capture identifying information associated with the vehicle;identify a driver associated with the vehicle based on the identifyinginformation associated with the first vehicle; query a database toretrieve data associated with the identified driver, the retrieved dataincluding at least appointment data of the identified driver; determinea second location associated with an appointment of the identifieddriver; identify, based on the retrieved data associated with the driverand the determined second location, a second digital roadside display atthe second location remote from the first location; generate, based onthe retrieved data associated with the identified driver, content fordisplay on the second digital roadside display; transmit the generatedcontent to the second digital roadside display; and cause the generatedcontent to display on the second digital roadside display.
 2. Thecontent determination and display system of claim 1, wherein generatingcontent for display on the second digital roadside display furtherincludes: determining a length of time of content display.
 3. Thecontent determination and display system of claim 2, further includinginstructions that, when executed, cause the content determination anddisplay system to: determine a speed at which the vehicle is travellingat the second location; modifying the determined length of time of thecontent display based on the determined speed.
 4. The contentdetermination and display system of claim 1, wherein the appointmentdata includes an address of the appointment, time of the appointment anddate of the appointment.
 5. The content determination and display systemof claim 1, wherein the identifying information associated with thevehicle is a license plate number.
 6. The content determination anddisplay system of claim 5, wherein the license plate number is capturedvia a roadside camera.
 7. The content determination and display systemof claim 1, wherein the identifying information associated with thevehicle is a vehicle identification number (VIN).
 8. A contentdetermination and display system comprising: one or more processors; anetwork interface configured to transmit content to one or more digitalroadside displays or other digital displays; and at least one memorystoring computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the one ormore processors, cause the content determination and display system to:determine that a vehicle is in proximity of a first digital roadsidedisplay at a first location; capture identifying information associatedwith the vehicle; identify a driver associated with the vehicle based onthe identifying information associated with the first vehicle; query adatabase to retrieve data associated with the identified driver;generate, based on the retrieved data associated with the identifieddriver, first content for display on the first digital roadside display;transmit the generated first content to the first digital roadsidedisplay; cause the generated first content to display on the firstdigital roadside display; request user input in response to the displayof the generated first content on the first digital roadside display;determine whether the requested user input was received within apredetermined time period; responsive to determining that the requesteduser input was received within the predetermined time period: generatesecond content; transmit the second content to the first digitalroadside display; and cause the second content to display on the firstdigital roadside display; responsive to determining that the requesteduser input was not received within the predetermined time period:identifying a display device, the display device being different fromthe first digital roadside display; transmit the generated first contentto the display device; and cause the generated first content to displayon the display device.
 9. The content determination and display systemof claim 8, wherein the display device is a mobile device of theidentified driver.
 10. The content determination and display system ofclaim 8, wherein the display device is a second digital roadsidedisplay.
 11. The content determination and display system of claim 8,wherein generating first content for display on the first digitalroadside display further includes: determining a length of time ofcontent display.
 12. The content determination and display system ofclaim 11, further including instructions that, when executed, cause thecontent determination and display system to: determine a speed at whichthe vehicle is travelling at the first location; modify the determinedlength of time of the content display based on the determined speed. 13.The content determination and display system of claim 8, wherein theidentifying information associated with the vehicle is a license platenumber.
 14. The content determination and display system of claim 13,wherein the license plate number is captured via a roadside camera. 15.The content determination and display system of claim 8, wherein theidentifying information associated with the vehicle is a vehicleidentification number (VIN).
 16. A content determination and displaysystem comprising: one or more processors; a network interfaceconfigured to transmit content to one or more digital roadside displaysor other digital displays; and at least one memory storingcomputer-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or moreprocessors, cause the content determination and display system to:capture identifying information associated with the vehicle; identify adriver associated with the vehicle based on the identifying informationassociated with the first vehicle; query a first database to retrievedata associated with the identified driver; generate, based on theretrieved data associated with the identified driver, content fordisplay; query a second database to retrieve data associated with amobile device of a user associated with the identified driver; transmitthe generated content to the mobile device of the user associated withthe identified driver; and cause the generated content to display on themobile device of the user associated with the identified driver.
 17. Thecontent determination and display system of claim 16, further includinginstructions that, when executed, cause the content determination anddisplay system to: identify one or more passengers other than theidentified driver within the vehicle, wherein querying the seconddatabase to retrieve data associated with a mobile device of a userassociated with the identified driver includes providing as input in thequery the identities of the one or more passengers other than theidentified driver.
 18. The content determination and display system ofclaim 16, wherein the identifying information associated with thevehicle is a license plate number.
 19. The content determination anddisplay system of claim 18, wherein the license plate number is capturedvia a roadside camera.
 20. The content determination and display systemof claim 16, wherein the identifying information associated with thevehicle is a vehicle identification number (VIN).